Department of Health and Social Care

Health Services: Finance

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on making available additional funding for the NHS to prepare for a potential increase in demand for health services between December 2018 and March 2019.

Stephen Hammond: My Rt hon. Friend The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care regularly meets with colleagues across Government to discuss a range of subjects. The Government is supporting the National Health Service with £1.6 billion of extra resource for 2018-19 to support accident and emergency and elective care performance. In addition, the Government has provided £145 million capital funding to support emergency care across the country to prepare for winter pressures; £36 million for ambulance trusts, which will go towards buying 256 new state-of-the-art ambulances; and, £240 million for local authorities to help ease winter pressures on the NHS, getting patients home quicker and freeing up hospital beds across England.

Obesity: Surgery

Eleanor Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was for bariatric surgery in each NHS trust in each of the last five calendar years; and how much has each trust paid in penalties incurred as a result of those waiting lists in each of those years.

Stephen Hammond: The requested data is not centrally collected.

Blood: Contamination

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what resources have been allocated to the NHS Business Services Authority to support victims of the contaminated blood scandal.

Jackie Doyle-Price: In 2018/19, NHS Business Services Authority has been awarded an annual budget allocation of up to £46.3 million from the Department to provide support for those affected by infected blood.

Alcoholic Drinks: Children

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that children are protected from the marketing of alcohol products.

Steve Brine: The Government is committed to working with industry to address concerns over any irresponsible promotions, advertising and marketing relating to alcohol, particularly to ensure that children and young people are suitably protected. Advertising in the United Kingdom is regulated by the Advertising Standards Authority, the industry’s independent regulator, who enforces the Advertising Codes through a system of self-regulation and co-regulation with Ofcom. The Codes apply to all media, including broadcast and online, and set standards for accuracy and honesty to which advertisers are expected to adhere, including specific conditions on advertising to children, causing offence and social responsibility. The Codes currently state that alcohol advertising must not be targeted at people under 18 and “should not imply, condone or encourage immoderate, irresponsible or anti-social drinking." The Codes are regularly reviewed and updated to ensure they remain effective. The Portman Group also provides a Code to the alcohol industry on Naming and Packaging and Promotion of Alcoholic Drinks, which includes that drinks should not have a particular appeal to under-18s.

Suicide

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people have died as a result of suicide while waiting for an appointment after referral by their GP to a relevant medical professional in each year since 2014.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The information requested is not centrally held. Suicide prevention is a priority for this Government. We are implementing the first access and waiting times for mental health. The National Health Service is meeting these first standards, and introducing more – with waiting times for children and young people’s eating disorder services being introduced from this year.

NHS: Migrant Workers

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the number of EU nationals recruited to work in the NHS in (a) Coventry, (b) West Midlands and (c) England in each year since 2010.

Stephen Hammond: NHS Digital publishes Hospital and Community Health Services (HCHS) workforce statistics. These include staff working in hospital trusts and clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), but not staff working in general practitioner surgeries, local authorities or other providers. The following table shows the headcount figures for the number of European Union national joiners to National Health Service trusts and CCGs in England, West Midlands and Coventry as at 30 June each year and the latest data available. EnglandWest Midlands Strategic Health AuthorityCoventryJune 2010 - June 20116,10132122June 2011 - June 20126,23932127June 2012 - June 20138,06139724June 2013 - June 201411,45764335June 2014 - June 201513,66782247June 2015 - June 201615,44978264June 2016 - June 201712,72068783August 2017 - August 201811,56555777Source: NHS HCHS monthly workforce statistics, NHS Digital. Nationality is self reported. Joiners and leavers data shows people leaving or returning to active service, this would include those going on or returning from maternity leave or career break, for example. EU nationals may have been employed in the United Kingdom before joining the NHS.

Grenfell Tower

Karen Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the £50 million committed to long-term mental and physical health checks and treatment for people affected by the Grenfell Tower will include the emergency service personnel who responded to that disaster.

Jackie Doyle-Price: NHS England announced on 9 October 2018 that up to £50 million will be available over five years to ensure that adequate and ongoing physical and mental health services are available for those affected by the Grenfell fire. This includes the victims, the bereaved, neighbouring residents, the wider local population and the first responders.

Healthcare Environmental Services

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Written Statement of 11 December 2018 on Clinical Waste, Official Report, HCWS1168, if he will publish the NHS trusts that continue to receive services from Healthcare Environmental Services.

Stephen Hammond: As of 13 December, no National Health Service trusts with remaining contacts in place with Healthcare Environment Services are reporting that they are continuing to receive their scheduled clinical waste collections from Healthcare Environmental Services. Contingency arrangements are in place for each of the affected trusts. An optional extension in the Mitie contract has been exercised, which will allow all affected trusts to access a replacement clinical waste collection service, should they choose to do so.

Healthcare Environmental Services

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Written Statement of 11 December 2018 on Clinical Waste, Official Report HCWS1168, what assessment he has made of the reasons why clinical waste from NHS trusts was not collected and properly disposed of by Healthcare Environmental Services.

Stephen Hammond: The Environment Agency is currently investigating the reasons as to why the clinical waste was over the permitted levels on a number of sites owned by Healthcare Environment Services, and they have launched criminal investigations into permit breaches by Healthcare Environmental Services.As of 13 December, all the trusts still holding contracts with Healthcare Environment Services have reported that Healthcare Environment Services have failed to meet scheduled waste collections. NHS Improvement sought assurance from Healthcare Environment Services that it has not ceased trading and will continue to provide services. Such assurance has not been forthcoming and contingency arrangements have therefore been put in place for each of the affected trusts.

Rare Diseases: Drugs

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has been made of the appropriateness of the Single Technology Appraisal process for rare diseases that do not meet the Highly Specialised Technology criteria.

Steve Brine: All topics, including selected drugs for rare diseases, are considered through a rigorous topic selection process before formal referral to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to ensure that NICE guidance is appropriate and will add value. NICE assesses most significant new drugs through its technology appraisal programme through which it has been able to recommend a number of drugs licenced for the treatment of rare diseases for routine use on the National Health Service.

Rare Diseases: Drugs

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many rare disease treatments appraised through the Single Technology Appraisal process have been approved by NICE.

Steve Brine: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has advised that it has published 48 technology appraisals of orphan medicines of which it has recommended 75% for some or all of the eligible patient population.

Rare Diseases: Drugs

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps are being taken to reduce variations in access to rare disease medicines in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Steve Brine: All issues relating to healthcare provisions are matters for the devolved administrations. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) makes recommendations on whether selected medicines for rare diseases and other treatments should be routinely funded by the National Health Service in England through its technology appraisal and highly specialised technologies programmes. NHS commissioners in England are legally required to fund drugs and treatments recommended by NICE to ensure consistent access across England. In the absence of NICE guidance on a treatment, commissioning decisions are made locally by individual clinical commissioning groups (CCGs). CCGs make funding decisions based on the needs of their population. Commissioning is about getting the best possible health outcomes for the local population and this involves assessing local needs and deciding priorities and strategies.

Rare Diseases: Drugs

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to ensure that UK patients with rare diseases will continue to be able to receive access to the highest quality medicines after the UK leaves the EU.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Government is committed to the safe and effective regulation of medicines in the United Kingdom; ensuring patients and the public have fast access to new, innovative medicines, including medicines for rare diseases. The agreement of an implementation period will ensure that access to medicines continues, and patient safety is maintained, in both the UK and European Union markets. Beyond that, the Political Declaration sets out a plan for a free trade area for goods, underpinned by deep regulatory co-operation, as well as a joint commitment to explore close cooperation with the European Medicines Agency. The Government also continues to prepare for the unlikely outcome that we leave the European Union without any deal in March 2019. The Department has been engaging with all pharmaceutical companies that supply the United Kingdom with pharmacy or prescription-only medicines from, or via, the EU/European Economic Area (EEA), on their contingency plans in the event of a no deal EU Exit. Whatever the exit scenario, we will continue to ensure that UK patients are able to access the best and most innovative medicines including medicines for rare diseases and that their safety is protected.

General Practitioners: Insurance

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on implementing a state-backed GP indemnity scheme in England; and whether the scheme will be implemented in April 2019.

Stephen Hammond: In October 2017, the former Secretary of State for Health (the Rt. hon. Jeremy Hunt MP) announced the intention of the Department to develop a state-backed indemnity scheme for general practice in England. This announcement recognised that the rising cost of clinical negligence is a great source of concern for general practitioners (GPs). The state-backed scheme is being designed to meet the needs of current and future GPs, offer affordable cover for GPs, and offer value for money for taxpayers. Since the announcement, the Government has been developing the design of the scheme. We are engaging with the medical defence organisations and representatives of general practice professionals, and have communicated key proposals on scope, funding and how it will operate. We currently plan to introduce the scheme next year.

Pneumococcal Diseases: Vaccination

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to his Answer of 3 December 2018 to Question 195079 on Pneumococcal Diseases: Vaccination, whether the modelling paper used by Public Health England to support the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation in its advice on the pneumococcal vaccination programme will be (a) made publicly available and (b) reviewed by external experts in advance of any ministerial decision being made on a change to the pneumococcal vaccination schedule.

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to his Answer of 24 October 2018 to Question 180205 on Pneumococcal Diseases: Vaccination, whether the expected number of cases of pneumococcal disease following the advice to change the vaccination schedule will be (a) made publicly available, (b) communicated to patient groups and (c) open to peer review in advance of any ministerial decision being made on a change to the pneumococcal vaccination schedule.

Steve Brine: Modelling prepared by Public Health England supported the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’s advice to move to a 1+1 schedule for Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine and outlines the expected impact of the change. This model has been submitted for publication in a peer reviewed journal, and will be published in due course.

Ambulance Services: Standards

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the category 1 mean response time has been in each quarter since the classification of ambulance response times changed.

Stephen Hammond: The data is not available in the format requested. Data on ambulance response times, including category 1 response times, is published monthly by NHS England and can be found at the following address:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/ambulance-quality-indicators/ambulance-quality-indicators-data-2018-19/

Health: Children

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 13 September 2018 to Question 170818 on Health: Children, what the planned publication date is for the Social Care Policy Research Programme review of the effectiveness of interventions for children and young people aged 3-18 years who have experienced adverse childhood experiences.

Jackie Doyle-Price: As set out in the answer to Question 170818, the review is expected to deliver its report to the Department by the end of the year. It will be published in due course, following peer review.

Air Ambulance Services

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support the operation of air ambulance services in the UK.

Stephen Hammond: The Autumn Budget announced £10 million of capital funding to support air ambulance services. In addition to this, air ambulance charities work closely with National Health Service ambulance services, and often receive direct support in the form of clinical staff and equipment.

Social Services

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people requested social care services but died before receiving any such service in each year since 2010.

Caroline Dinenage: NHS Digital statistics record that, in 2017/18, there were 32,115 new requests for services from applicants who were deceased before they received the package. This data records requests for care, not individual deaths as requested, and represents approximately 1.7% of total new requests. This first mandatory collection of this date was in 2017/18, with complete data for years prior to 2017/18 not available. The data was first collected in 2016/17 via a voluntary collection from local authorities where less than a quarter of local authorities submitted a response. This means that the 2016/17 and 2017/18 figures are not directly comparable; in 2016/17 the voluntary returns from local authorities who recorded 6,580 new requests for services from applicants who were deceased before they received the package, based on returns from 36 out of 152 local authorities.

Drugs and Medical Equipment: Imports

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the robustness of supply chain networks for EU supplied (a) medicines, and (b) medical equipment in (i) England, (ii) Wales, (iii) Scotland and (iv) Northern Ireland over the next two years.

Stephen Hammond: The Government has now agreed the Withdrawal Agreement with the European Commission. As a consequence, the Department does not expect market access to medicines and medical products for the United Kingdom to change under the terms of that agreement during the implementation period, which will run from March 2019 until December 2020. The supply of medicines and medical products would remain unchanged during the implementation period. The Department does not expect to see significant changes to existing medicine and medical product supply chains or capacity in the intervening period. However, we will be monitoring this closely. As a responsible Government, we continue to prepare proportionately for all scenarios, including the unlikely outcome that we leave the European Union without a deal in March 2019. Our contingency planning covers the entire UK and has been developed in partnership with the devolved administrations. The public can be confident that the UK Government and the devolved administrations are working to ensure an aligned approach to achieving our objective of ensuring a seamless supply to patients throughout the UK should we leave the EU without a deal in March 2019. There are already teams within the Department that deal with medical supplies shortages arising both in the community and in hospitals. We have well-established operational levers and channels we use between ourselves, the Medicines and Health products Regulatory Agency and the National Health Service to mitigate supply issues.

Life Expectancy

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of regional disparities on life expectancy.

Steve Brine: Public Health England has published ‘A review of recent trends in mortality in England’. This shows that life expectancy is as high as it has ever been in this country, but improvements have slowed down, and there remain differences in life expectancy between areas across the country. The review is available to view at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/recent-trends-in-mortality-in-england-review-and-data-packs

Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust

Clive Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Care Quality Commission report of November 2018, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Hammond: As a result of the findings of the Care Quality Commission’s (CQC) 28 November 2018 inspection report on Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust, the CQC’s Chief Inspector of Hospitals recommended that the Trust remains in special measures for quality reasons in order to make further improvements, and NHS Improvement has accepted this recommendation so that the Trust can continue to have access to a range of intensive support, such as a quality improvement director and an extensive buddying arrangement with East London NHS Foundation Trust a leading mental health Trust rated ‘Outstanding’ by the CQC. NHS Improvement has agreed several immediate actions with the Trust to improve patient safety and address the CQC’s concerns and is also working closely with the Trust, the CQC and the wider system to ensure that the right package of support is in place to deliver sustainable improvements.

NHS

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with NHS Trust leaders on planning for the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Stephen Hammond: My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care regularly engages with stakeholders, agencies, arms-length bodies, and other Government Departments about European Union exit preparations. On 23 August 2018, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care wrote to all National Health Service organisations, general practitioners, community pharmacies and other service providers. The letter set out what the health and care system needs to consider in the period leading up to March 2019, including:- the continued supply of medical products in the event of no deal; and- business continuity plans. The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care also wrote to health and care providers on 7 December 2018 to update them on the Government's preparations for a potential no-deal Brexit. The letter provides an update on what the health and care system needs to consider in the period leading up to March 2019. It includes plans relating to the continued supply of:- medicines and vaccines;- medical devices and clinical consumables;- blood and other products of human origin; and- non-clinical consumables, goods and services. The letter also contains information on the health and care workforce, research and clinical trials, and business continuity plans.

Drugs: Manufacturing Industries

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with pharmaceutical companies on planning for the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Stephen Hammond: The Government has now agreed the Withdrawal Agreement with the European Commission. As a consequence, the Department does not expect market access to medicines for the United Kingdom to change under the terms of that agreement during the implementation period, which will run from March 2019 until December 2020. As a responsible Government, however, we continue to prepare proportionately for all scenarios, including the unlikely outcome that we leave the European Union without any deal in March 2019. On 23 August 2018, the Department wrote to all pharmaceutical companies that supply prescription only medicines and pharmacy medicines to the UK that come from, or via, the EU or European Economic Area (EEA) asking them to ensure a minimum of six weeks additional supply in the UK, over and above existing business-as-usual buffer stocks, by 29 March 2019. Since then, we have received very good engagement from industry who share our aims of ensuring continuity of medicines supply for patients is maintained and able to cope with any potential delays at the border that may arise in the short term in the event of a no-deal Brexit. On 7 December, we wrote again to those companies to inform them of the Government’s updated border planning assumptions and planned response to those. We followed that up with a request for more detailed information about their current supply routes in order to support the rerouting of medicines required in a no deal scenario

Department of Health and Social Care: Brexit

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding his Department has allocated to implementing contingency plans in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Stephen Hammond: We do not want or expect a no deal scenario. However, it is the duty of a responsible Government to continue to prepare for a range of potential outcomes, including the unlikely event of no deal. Extensive work to prepare for a no deal scenario, including contingency planning, has been under way for over two years and we are taking necessary steps to ensure the country continues to operate smoothly from the day we leave. The Autumn Budget 2018 confirmed an additional £500 million of cross-Government European Union exit funding for 2019/20 so that departments can continue to prepare effectively for exiting the EU. This means that the the Government will have invested over £4 billion in preparing for EU exit since 2016. This funding will help departments manage pressures and contingencies arising from EU exit preparations which fall in the 2019/20 financial year, as well as ensuring that the United Kingdom is prepared to seize the opportunities available when the UK leaves the EU. The Department is preparing for all eventualities and the resources available to support preparations are kept under constant review.

Compulsorily Detained Psychiatric Patients

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Communities and Local Government, how much his Department has spent on aftercare under Section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983 in each of the last eight years.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effect of the change in the number of detentions under the Mental Health Act 1983 on the overall costs of aftercare under section 117 of that Act.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of clinical commissioning group policies that detail formal agreements with local authorities on the division of funding each will deliver under section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department spent on aftercare delivered under section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983 in the most recent year for which data is available.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Information on the costs of aftercare services provided under section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983 is a matter for individual local authorities and clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and is not collected centrally. The Government is concerned about rising numbers of detentions under the Act, which is why we requested an independent review, the final report of which was published earlier this month. The review’s report contains a number of recommendations on the administration of section 117 aftercare, including proposing national guidance on the division of funding between local authorities and CCGs. The Government has made no assessment of local CCG policies on this matter. We will be considering these recommendations in detail before responding in due course. The report of the independent review is available at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/762206/MHA_reviewFINAL.pdf

Prime Minister

Yemen: Military Intervention

Keith Vaz: To ask the Prime Minister, what discussions she had with her counterparts at the G20 Summit in Argentina on a ceasefire in Yemen.

Mrs Theresa May: I refer the Rt Hon. Gentleman to the Oral Statement I gave to the House on 3 December 2018 on the 2018 G20 Summit, Official Report, Column 531

Prime Minister: Brexit

Layla Moran: To ask the Prime Minister, what estimate she has made of (a) the cost to the public purse and (b) the carbon footprint of her visits to her counterparts in other EU member states and the representatives of the EU Council and the Commission between 10 December 2018 and 13 December 2018.

Mrs Theresa May: Information regarding the cost of Ministerial overseas travel is published on gov.uk on a quarterly basis. Costs for this trip will be made available through this process, in the usual way

Department for Work and Pensions

Universal Credit: Lone Parents

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) male and (b) female lone parent university students have been affected by the requirement to move from claiming tax credits to universal credit.

Alok Sharma: I refer the hon. Member to my answer to Question 163623 on 20 July 2018.

Child Support

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of enabling parents to pursue Child Support Agency arrears written off under the Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2018 through the legal system.

Justin Tomlinson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 06 December 2018 to Question 198381. https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2018-12-03/198381/

Carer's Allowance: Young People

Judith Cummins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has plans exempt young adult carers from the 21-hour study in relation to the carer’s allowance.

Sarah Newton: This Government recognises and values the vital contribution made by all carers, young or old in supporting some of the most vulnerable in society including pensioners and those with disabilities. The Government thinks it is important that carers can maintain links with the education system and so carers are able to undertake part-time education and still receive Carer’s Allowance. However, there are no plans to change the current 21 hour study rule as we think it is right that people in full-time education should be supported by the educational maintenance system, via its range of loans and grants, rather than the social security benefit system. That is why, as a general principle, full-time students are usually precluded from entitlement to income-related and income-maintenance benefits. Many college courses are provided on the basis of 16 hours a week supervised study so we have been working with the Learning and Work Institute and colleges to increase awareness of the Carer’s Allowance study rules.

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many complaints of maladministration from women born in the 1950s relating to the change in their state pension age have been submitted to her Department’s Independent Case Examiner in each of the last five years.

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many complaints of maladministration from women born in the 1950s relating to the change in their state pension age submitted to her Department’s Independent Case Examiner have been (a) resolved, (b) rejected, (c) closed for other reasons.

Guy Opperman: Individual government departments have long established complaints procedures. That approach has not changed under Labour governments 1997-2010 or successive governments. The DWP has a two tier complaints process which considers formal complaints about our service. Once a complainant has exhausted the DWP complaint process they are signposted to the Independent Case Examiner’s Office if they are dissatisfied with the final response to their complaint. The Independent Case Examiner is independent.The table below provides information on the method by which complaints submitted to the Independent Case Examiner’s (ICE) Office, concerning changes to women’s State Pension age, were closed.

Social Security Benefits

Gerald Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) universal credit claimants, (b) new universal credit claimants and (c) benefit suspensions in (i) Merthy Tydfil, (ii) South Wales and (iii) the UK in each month since 1 April 2018.

Alok Sharma: Monthly official experimental statistics on the number of people on Universal Credit, starts and claims, are published at:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/universal-credit-statistics Further breakdowns of claims by country, parliamentary constituency and local authority and also a breakdown of starts by postcode, since April 2018 are available on Stat Xplore at:https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/.Quarterly official statistics Universal Credit decisions are published at:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/jobseekers-allowance-sanctions Further breakdowns of sanction decisions by country, parliamentary constituency and local authority since April 2018 are available on Stat-Xplore at:https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/.Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html

Universal Credit

Gerald Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the number of payments of universal credit paid to claimants on time and correct at (a) first assessment and (b) second assessment; what the average amount of time taken has been to resolve such payments; and what the longest outstanding claim has been by number of weeks before it was resolved in (i) Merthyr Tydfil, (ii) South Wales and (iii) the UK.

Alok Sharma: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Universal Credit: Self-employed

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the effect of the minimum income floor on self-employed people.

Alok Sharma: The aim of the Minimum Income Floor (MIF) is to encourage gainfully self-employed claimants to grow their business. It addresses flaws in Working Tax Credits and Housing Benefit that provided full support to claimants reporting persistently low (or zero) earnings from self-employment. Only Universal Credit claimants with a work expectation will have a MIF applied to their Universal Credit. A claimant’s expected hours of work depends on their circumstances. Where a claimant has limitations on the hours they can reasonably be expected to work, their MIF level is reduced. This ensures the level of the MIF matches the work expectations of other claimants in similar circumstances. One of the announcements in Autumn Budget 2018 was that the 12-month start-up period, where claimants are exempt from the MIF, will be extended to all gainfully self-employed claimants, new to Universal Credit, or new to self-employment. We plan to introduce this from July 2019 with full implementation from September 2020. This will provide time for self-employed claimants to establish and grow their business, and strikes a balance between support for new business, not trapping claimants in poverty, and protecting public funds. Plans are in place for an evaluation of the MIF and a large-scale tracking survey of self-employed Universal Credit claimants with a MIF applied to their claim Universal Credit encourages all claimants with a work expectation to find and progress in work. To support those already in, or considering self-employment, we are also extending the New Enterprise Allowance (NEA) scheme from April 2019 onwards. The NEA provides support and mentoring for claimants who are looking to start or develop their business.

Poverty

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of trends in the level of in-work poverty; and if she will make an assessment of the implications for her policies of the December 2018 Joseph Rowntree Foundation report conclusion that in-work poverty is rising faster than employment.

Justin Tomlinson: The figures quoted by the Joseph Rowntree Trust in this report are taken from official national statistics on the number and proportion of people in relative low income published by the Department for Work in March 2018. These statistics show that the risk of being in relative poverty (before housing costs) has remained broadly stable over time; there is a 10% chance of working adults being in relative poverty (before housing costs), which has not varied by more than 1 percentage point since 2005. The data also shows that the majority of those in relative in-work poverty are those with part-time work only, single earner couples, or those in full-time self-employment. Universal Credit is designed to help by offering smooth incentives to increase hours, setting a general expectation that lone parents and partners should work (if not caring for young children or a disabled person) and by offering generous childcare subsidies.

Interserve: Pensions

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent discussions her Department has had with representatives of (a) The Pensions Regulator and (b) the Pension Protection Fund on Interserve plc.

Guy Opperman: The independent Pensions Regulator has a range of powers to regulate and protect pension schemes and it works closely with all those involved. The Pension Protection Fund is also independent of Government and protects members of defined benefit occupational pension schemes, if their employer becomes insolvent. The Department for Work and Pensions is in regular contact with both the Pensions Regulator and the Pension Protection Fund. The Government does not comment on individual cases.

Universal Credit

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of universal credit advance payments have been paid on the day on which they have been applied for.

Alok Sharma: The data requested is not held. We aim to pay advances on Universal Credit within 72 hours. However, an advance can be paid on the same day the claimant applies if they or their household would suffer genuine hardship if they had to wait 72 hours for the payment.

Universal Credit

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people who have applied for a universal credit advance payment have been unsuccessful in that application.

Alok Sharma: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Universal Credit

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what information his Department holds on what proportion of universal credit advance payments for (a) childcare, (b) housing and (c) childcare and housing costs.

Alok Sharma: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Universal Credit

Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many universal credit claimants have had their payments reduced as a result of being paid two consecutive months salaries in a single assessment period as a result of their payment dates.

Alok Sharma: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Children: Maintenance

Sandy Martin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of the £20 referral fee and four per cent collect and pay charge levied on people using the collect and pay service for Child Maintenance Service payments.

Sandy Martin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the frequency with which receiving parents are required to pay the £20 referral fee or the four per cent collect and pay charge when Child Maintenance Payments have not been made.

Sandy Martin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to abolish the (a) £20 referral fee and (b) 4 per cent collect and pay charge for Child Maintenance Service payments.

Sandy Martin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department plans to abolish (a) the £20 referral fee and (b) the 4 per cent collection fee charged to receiving parents who use the Child Maintenance Scheme collect and pay service.

Justin Tomlinson: Fees and charges are intended to encourage separated parents to collaborate where possible to achieve the best outcome for their children. The application fee is a one-off payment of £20 and is waived for clients aged 18 or under, or those who have reported domestic abuse. The Direct Pay service does not incur any on-going collection charges. Collection charges only apply when a case is being managed in the Collect and Pay service. The four per cent charge for receiving parents is deducted only when maintenance is paid. On 03 August 2017, we published the outcome of a review of the impact of fees and charges. The evidence available did not indicate that charges were preventing parents from making an application, and the majority of parents found the fee affordable. Roughly half of parents stated that charges influenced their decision to try a direct pay arrangement first. We have no plans to abolish the application fee or charges, both of which remain central to our aim of encouraging collaboration and incentivising use of the Direct Pay service.

Home Office

Airguns: Reviews

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will publish the Government's response to the Air Weapons Review before the House rises for the Christmas adjournment.

Victoria Atkins: The Government fully understands the interest that Members of Parliament and others have in the outcomes of the Home Office review of the regulation of air weapons. It remains our intention to set these out as soon as we can.

Refugees: Children

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Department has taken to honour its commitment to implement the Dubs amendment; what assessment he has made of whether his Department has met that commitment.

Caroline Nokes: We continue to work very closely with participating States France, Greece and Italy, local authorities and delivery partners to relocate the specified number of 480 children under Section 67 of the Immigration Act 2016 as soon as possible. Over 220 children are already in the UK and transfers are ongoing.We recently took the positive decision to remove the date criterion for the referral of unaccompanied children in Europe to be relocated to the UK un-der section 67. Participating States will now be able to refer the most vul-nerable children whose best interests are served by relocation to the UK, regardless of when they arrived into Europe. We expect this to increase the rate of referrals from participating States. Relocation of eligible children to the UK is also dependent on the availability of appropriate local authority care placements.

Cybercrime

Jo Platt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the potential benefits of amending section 1 of the Computer Misuse Act 1990 to allow UK cyber security and threat intelligence researchers to protect organisations through the supply of threat intelligence.

Mr Ben Wallace: The Computer Misuse Act (CMA) has undergone several amendments to ensure it keeps pace with the evolving threat, including most recently in 2015. The Home Office keeps the CMA under regular review to determine any potential benefits and drawbacks of legislative change, including through engagement with the cyber security sector.

Asylum: Finance

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what financial support mechanisms his Department has in place to support asylum seekers.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office ensures asylum seekers are not left destitute by providing appropriate support under section 95 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. The support package usually consists of free, furnished accommodation (with utility bills and council tax paid) and a weekly cash allowance to meet other essential living needs. But those who find accommodation through friends or relatives may be provided with the allowance only.  The level of the allowance, currently set at £37.75 per week for each person in the household, is reviewed each year to make sure it is sufficient to cover essential living needs.The most recent assessment of the adequacy of the asylum support rates is set out in a report published in March 2018, which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/report-on-review-of-cash-allowance-paid-to-asylum-seekers.

Asylum: Applications

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum applications have been received by his Department in each of the last 12 months.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office publishes data, in its quarterly Immigration Statistics release, on the number of applications for asylum in the UK, broken down by quarter, in table as_01_q (Asylum, volume 1)Latest edition available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/758192/asylum1-sep-2018-tables.ods

Asylum

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum seekers are currently living in the UK.

Caroline Nokes: Information on the UK’s resident population is a matter for the Office for National Statistics. The Home Office does not publish estimates on the number of asylum seekers currently living in the UK.The Home Office does however publish quarterly breakdowns of the number of asylum applications pending a decision (including dependants), in table as_02_q (asylum, volume 2) of the quarterly Immigration Statistics release. Latest edition available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/758195/asylum2-sep-2018-tables.ods

Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the level of resources required by the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority as a result of the introduction of the new seasonal workers pilot in the agricultural sector.

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to section 5 of the Gangmasters (Licensing) Act 2004, how the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority plans to license non-EU labour providers engaged in the seasonal workers pilot in the agricultural sector.

Caroline Nokes: As with all labour providers in the agricultural sector, the scheme operators for the Seasonal Workers Pilot will be required to be fully licensed by the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority. No bespoke licencing arrangements are required. Full details of how the seasonal workers pilot will operate will be announced in due course. Ensuring the protection and wellbeing of participating migrant workers is of primary importance .We are working with the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority to ensure that we get this right.

British Nationality: Deportation

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many UK citizens have been wrongly deported by his Department since 2010.

Caroline Nokes: The requested information was disclosed in a letter from Sir Philip Rutnam KCB Permanent Secretary to the Home Affairs Select Committee earlier this year. A copy of the letter was placed in the Libraries of both Houses and can also be accessed at the following link:https://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-committees/home-affairs/Correspondence-17-19/180514-Home-Office-Permanent-Secretary-Immigration-Enforcement.pdf

Police: Expenditure

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much the UK spent on policing as a proportion of GDP in the 2017-18 financial year; and how that figure compares to the (a) G7 and (b) EU average.

Mr Nick Hurd: Total funding for Police and Crime Commissioners in England and Wales, counter-terrorism policing and national policing programmes was £12.5 bil-lion in 2017-18, including council tax, which represents 0.62% of GDP. This figure excludes policing in Scotland and Northern Ireland as these are matters for devolved administrations and not the responsibility of the Home Office.Overall, public investment in policing is growing by over £1 billion from £11.9 billion in 2015/16 to £13 billion in 2018/19, including counter-terrorism policing, funding for national programmes and local policing in England and Wales.The Home Office does not collect or hold direct international comparisons for these statistics.

Home Office: Written Questions

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he plans by the Hon Member for Bristol South to answer Question 197648 on Airguns: Reviews tabled on 30 November 2018.

Victoria Atkins: The response for UIN 197648 was given on 17th December 2018.

ICT: Migrant Workers

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment his Department has made of trends in level of applications for extensions of Tier 2 stay and work visas in the information and communications Sector in the first three quarters of this calendar year.

Caroline Nokes: Information on applicants for extensions of stay for work using sponsorship certificates, by tier and industry type (including information and communications) is published quarterly in the ‘Immigration Statistics’ release. The latest, to September 2018, can be found in table cs_04_q at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-year-ending-september-2018/list-of-tables#sponsorship

Migration

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to his oral evidence to the Home Affairs Committee on 27 November 2018, what steps his Department is taking to achieve the Government's target for net migration with regard to (a) skilled workers, (b) agricultural labourers and (c) international students.

Caroline Nokes: We are committed to reducing net migration to sustainable levels.We will shortly be bringing forward a White Paper outlining the principles of the future immigration system.  We have been clear that the UK will always be open to those who bring valuable skills, experience and investment to the UK and our economy. We will continue to pursue immigration policies that are selective about who makes the greatest contribution to our country.

Visas: Foreign Investment in UK

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons he (a) planned to suspend the granting of Tier 1 Investor visas, (b) cancelled that suspension and (c) did not announce those decisions in written or oral statements to the House; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Nokes: The Tier 1 (Investor) visa is not currently suspended. The Home Office remains committed to reforming the route and will make a further announcement in due course.

Treasury

Food: Waste Disposal

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential cost to local authorities of mandatory separate food waste collections in England.

Elizabeth Truss: The Government will set out details on our ambitious approach to food waste collections in the cross-government Resources and Waste Strategy. A regulatory impact assessment will be published alongside any future consultations on policy changes.

Carbon Tax

Nic Dakin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to reduce the rate of the UK carbon tax.

Robert Jenrick: The Carbon Price Support is a tax on fossil fuels used in power generation in Great Britain which provides a ‘top-up’ to the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) to form the Total Carbon Price. As announced at Budget 2018, Carbon Price Support rates will be frozen at £18/tCO2 in 2020-21. From 2021-22, the government will seek to lower CPS rates if the Total Carbon Price remains high. The government is committed to meeting its climate change commitments including reducing carbon emissions by at least 80% of 1990 levels by 2050, and meeting interim carbon budgets, whilst also ensuring the continued competitiveness of UK businesses. The tax system is an important part of this.

Social Services: Children

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of total public expenditure is spent on children’s services delivered by local government.

Matt Western: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of public expenditure is spent on children’s services delivered by local government.

Elizabeth Truss: As outlined in the Office for Budget Responsibility’s October 2018 Economic and Fiscal Outlook, total managed expenditure was £793.8bn in 2017/18 and will increase to £812.8bn in 2018/19.Local authority spending on children’s services in 2017/18 was £9.4bn. Councils have access to over £200 billion to deliver local services, including children’s services, between 2015/16 and 2019/20 and local government core spending power will increase in real terms next year.

Housing Associations: Finance

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 11 October 2018 to Question 176223 on Housing Associations: Finance, whether that new spending will result in Barnett consequentials for the devolved administrations.

Elizabeth Truss: UK Government departments have not been set budgets beyond the current Spending Review period. The Barnett Formula will be applied in the normal way at the next Spending Review to the additional allocations to the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Bankruptcy: Tax Avoidance

Ross Thomson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he has taken to ensure that those affected by the 2019 loan charge are not forced into bankruptcy by the repayments.

Mel Stride: Disguised Remuneration (DR) schemes are contrived arrangements that pay loans in place of ordinary remuneration with the sole purpose of avoiding income tax and National Insurance contributions. On average loan scheme users have twice as much income as the average UK taxpayer, when taking into account the loan they received. HMRC is working hard to help individuals get out of tax avoidance for good and are encouraging anyone who is concerned about their ability to pay to contact them as soon as possible to discuss their options. HMRC has set up a dedicated helpline for those wanting to settle their avoidance scheme use, and discuss payment options. HMRC does not want to make anybody bankrupt and very few cases ever reach that stage. They will work with all individuals to reach a manageable and sustainable payment plan wherever possible. HMRC has simplified the process for those who choose to settle their use of avoidance schemes before the loan charge arises, so that those earning less than £50,000 a year and are no longer engaging in tax avoidance can agree a payment plan of up to five years without the need for detailed supporting information. There is no maximum period within which an overall settlement can be agreed, and all individual cases will be dealt with appropriately and sympathetically. Since the announcement of the 2019 loan charge at Budget 2016, HMRC has agreed settlements on disguised remuneration schemes with employers and individuals of over 650 million pounds. More than 90% of this amount was collected from employers, with less than 10% from individuals.

Winter Fuel Payments

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many senior citizens that were entitled to the winter fuel payment in 2017 were higher rate tax payers.

Elizabeth Truss: HMRC does not hold detailed information on individuals who are entitled to Winter Fuel Payments. The Winter Fuel Payment is a household benefit, where eligibility is based on a number of factors.Information on the eligibility for winter fuel payments can be found in the link below:https://www.gov.uk/winter-fuel-payment/eligibility

Tax Avoidance

Alison McGovern: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what projections his Department has produced of the tax receipts arising from the changes to IR35 rules as announced in Budget 2018.

Mel Stride: The off-payroll working reform in the private sector, announced at Budget 2018, is projected to increase tax receipts by nearly £3 billion over the period 2018-19 to 2023-24. This estimate has been independently assured by the Office for Budget Responsibility. The off-payroll working rules (commonly known as IR35) are in place to ensure that individuals who work through their own limited company (e.g. personal service company) and would have been an employee had they provided their services directly, pay broadly the same tax and National Insurance as other employees.

Small Businesses: Scotland

Kirsty Blackman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has plans to provide financial support to businesses in Scotland deploying no-deal contingency plans as a result of the Government deferring the meaningful vote on the Withdrawal Agreement.

Elizabeth Truss: The Government has taken steps throughout the EU Exit process to help businesses to prepare for a range of potential scenarios. These include the Government as a whole publishing 106 specific technical notices to help businesses prepare for March 2019 in the event of a ‘no deal’ scenario, and HMRC publishing a ‘Partnership Pack’ and sending letters to 145,000 traders setting out some actions businesses should take now to prepare for changes at the border in a ‘no deal’ scenario. We will continue to work with the Scottish Government to support businesses in Scotland.

Research: Expenditure

Liam Byrne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of UK expenditure on research and development as a proportion of GDP in 2017-18; and how that level of expenditure compares to (a) other G7 countries and (b) the EU.

Elizabeth Truss: The latest ONS data estimates that overall gross R&D expenditure in the UK was £33.1bn in 2016, which was 1.7% of GDP in that year. 2017 data is due to be released in March 2019. The latest OECD international comparison of R&D expenditure ranked the UK 5th in the G7 and 10th among EU nations in 2016.

Aviation: VAT

Dame Margaret Hodge: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish the findings of the his Department's investigation into the scheme for VAT avoidance on private jets in the Isle of Man.

Dame Margaret Hodge: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the Government plans to report on the HM Treasury investigation into the Isle of Man's administration of VAT for private jets that was due to be completed in Spring 2018.

Mel Stride: The Isle of Man is a self-governing jurisdiction and makes its own decisions about how to make sure VAT rules are followed. The Isle of Man invited HM Treasury to carry out a review of its VAT procedures for the importation of aircraft and yachts, which is now being finalised. This is a complex area of VAT law and it is important that we take our time to get this right.

Treasury: Brexit

Layla Moran: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of ministerial visits of his Department to discuss the withdrawal agreement from 3 to 10 December 2018; and if he will place the itineraries of those visits in the Library before the Christmas recess.

Robert Jenrick: Government Departments publish Ministers’ and Senior Officials’ travel, hospitality and external meetings on a quarterly basis. The data for December will be processed as part of the October to December quarterly return which will be published in due course. Previous publications can be found here at the following links: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/senior-officials-expenses

Equitable Life Assurance Society: Compensation

Darren Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the validity of the Equitable Members Action Group statement that former Equitable policyholders are owed £2.5 billion; and whether he plans to allocate that amount to the Equitable Life Compensation Scheme.

John Glen: There are no plans to allocate any further funds to the Equitable Life Payment Scheme.

Motor Vehicles: VAT

Peter Dowd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much money has accrued to the public purse as a result of the introduction of VAT anti-avoidance measures on imported road vehicles since 2011.

Mel Stride: The Notification of Vehicle Arrivals (NOVA) system was introduced on 15 April 2013 and was designed to reduce VAT evasion when road vehicles are permanently imported into the UK from the European Union. The expected Exchequer revenue from this measure was set out in Table 2.2 of Budget 2013:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/221901/budget2013_table2-2_previous_measures_with_effect_april2013.xls In 2014 HMRC evaluated the yield from this measure following the first year of operation of the system. The conclusion was that the scheme has been successful in reducing evasion as intended, and that the projections made at Budget 2013 remained the best estimate of the revenue yield.

Stamp Duty Land Tax: Tax Avoidance

Peter Dowd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much has been accrued to the public purse as a result of the introduction of anti-avoidance measures in relation to Stamp Duty Land Tax since 2011.

Mel Stride: Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) legislation was introduced with effect from 21 March 2012 to address the enveloping of high value residential property in corporate wrappers. In addition, from 1April 2013 the Government introduced the Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings (ATED). The table attached shows the annual revenue from the 15% rate of SDLT and ATED between 2012/13 and 2017/18. Separately, legislation was introduced with effect from 24 March 2011 and 21 March 2013 to tackle avoidance schemes involving the sub-sale rules, provisions on exchanges of property and Alternative Property Finance relief. Since these measures were introduced there have been no further iterations of these schemes. They have therefore been successful in protecting revenues, but it is not possible to say how much would otherwise have been lost.



Table as mentioned in answer
(Word Document, 31.89 KB)

Tax Avoidance

Peter Dowd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much revenue has accrued to the public purse from anti-avoidance measures to tackle disguised remuneration since 2011.

Mel Stride: Disguised Remuneration (DR) schemes are contrived arrangements that pay loans in place of ordinary remuneration with the sole purpose of avoiding income tax and National Insurance contributions. The Government introduced legislation in 2011 to target arrangements intended to disguise remuneration, which were forecast to raise £3.8bn. At Budget 2016, the Government announced a package of changes, including the charge on disguised remuneration (DR) loans, which are estimated to raise £3.2 billion for the Exchequer by 2021. Further information can be found in the ‘Disguised remuneration: further update’ policy paper, published on 22 November 2017: www.gov.uk/government/publications/disguised-remuneration-further-update/disguised-remuneration-further-update. Since the announcement of the charge on DR loans, HMRC has agreed settlements on disguised remuneration schemes with employers and individuals of over 650 million pounds. More than 90% of this amount was collected from employers, with less than 10% from individuals. If scheme users repay the loan or agree a settlement for the tax that they owe with HMRC, they will not face the charge.

Advance Pricing Agreements

Peter Dowd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much revenue has accrued to the public purse from anti-avoidance measures to tackle groups of companies using intra-group loans or derivatives to reduce the group’s tax bill.

Mel Stride: There have been a large number of measures over the years which operate to counter Corporation Tax avoidance using intra-group loans and derivatives. The key measures are the ‘unallowable purpose’ rules (sections 441 and 690 of Corporation Tax Act 2009), the transfer pricing rules (Part 4 of Taxation (International and Other Provisions) Act 2010 (“TIOPA 2010”)), the group mismatch scheme rules (Part 21B of Corporation Tax Act 2010 (“CTA 2010”)), the tax mismatch scheme rules (Part 21BA of CTA 2010), the hybrid and other mismatches rules (Part 6A of TIOPA 2010), the controlled foreign companies rules (Part 9A of TIOPA 2010) and the corporate interest restriction rules (Part 10 of TIOPA 2010). Taken together these measures have been successful in protecting revenues, but it is not possible to say how much would otherwise have been lost.

Energy: VAT

Clive Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has plans to respond to his Department's consultation on VAT on energy-saving materials which closed in December 2015.

Mel Stride: HMRC’s consultation closed on 3 February 2016. HM Treasury are discussing the practical application of the Court of Justice of the European Union’s judgment with the European Commission.

Members: Correspondence

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when his Department plans to respond to the letter of 16 October 2018 from the hon. Member for Glasgow Central to the Financial Secretary to the Treasury on the conduct of HMRC.

Mel Stride: I replied to the hon. Member on 19 November. A copy of my reply has also been sent by email.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Big Lottery Fund

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how much Big Lottery funding per capita was allocated to (a) Lewisham Deptford constituency, (b) London and (c) England in the last 12 months.

Mims Davies: For the financial year 2017/18 data is as follows:  Current Authorised AmountPopulationPer CapitaEngland (Country)£323,916,85555,619,430£5.82London (Region)£89,906,7048,825,001£10.19Lewisham, Deptford (Constituency)£6,079,038125,190£48.56

Youth Services: Lambeth

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many youth service centres have closed down in Lambeth in each month since 2010.

Mims Davies: The data concerning the number of youth service centres that have closed down in Lambeth in each month since 2010 is not held by my department.

Alcoholic Drinks: Advertising

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will include alcohol products in the proposed consultation on a 9pm watershed on the advertising of unhealthy foods.

Margot James: In the second chapter of the Government's Childhood Obesity Plan, published in June, we committed to consult by the end of 2018 on introducing a 9pm watershed on TV advertising of HFSS products and similar protection for children viewing adverts online - with the aim of limiting children’s exposure to HFSS advertising, and incentivising sugar and calorie reduction. Alcohol advertising is not in scope for this work because the consultation is focused on products that children consume. As with HFSS advertising, alcohol advertising in the UK is regulated by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), the industry’s independent regulator, who enforce the Advertising Codes through a system of self-regulation and co-regulation with Ofcom. The Codes apply to all media, including broadcast and online, and set standards for accuracy and honesty to which advertisers are expected to adhere, including specific conditions on advertising to children, causing offence and social responsibility. The Codes recognise the social imperative of ensuring alcohol advertising is responsible. They are regularly reviewed and updated by the industry to ensure they remain effective, and proposed changes to the Codes are routinely subject to public consultation. The Codes currently state that alcohol advertising must not be targeted at people under 18 and “should not imply, condone or encourage immoderate, irresponsible or anti-social drinking.

Arts

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the contribution to the economy of the creative sector.

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the contribution of the video games industry to the economy.

Margot James: We are incredibly proud of our world-beating Creative Industries. In 2017, the creative industries made a record contribution of £101.5 billion to the UK economy - accounting for 5.5% of UK GVA - as shown by the latest DCMS Economic Estimates, which were released last month and can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/759707/DCMS_Sectors_Economic_Estimates_2017__provisional__GVA.pdf Within this, the video games industry contributed £1.1bn, accounting for 0.1% of UK GVA. The sector has increased from £430 million in 2010.

Charities

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions he has had with the Charity Commission on the time taken to conduct investigations into charities.

Mims Davies: Officials in my department have regular conversations with the Charity Commission. In serious cases of abuse of and within charities, the Commission may open a statutory inquiry and will use its powers to robustly tackle abuse and misconduct. In 2017-2018, the Commission exercised its powers 1,136 times. There is no fixed duration for an inquiry, but the Commission’s aim is to conclude investigations as soon as is practicable. The time an inquiry can take will depend on many factors, including: the nature and complexity of the issues being investigated; the responsiveness of trustees and third parties; and whether other agencies are involved. The majority of the Commission’s inquiries are complex and must be conducted thoroughly and comprehensively, in line with public expectations of the regulator. Furthermore, where the Commission is investigating issues alongside other regulators and law enforcement agencies, those investigations may take priority so as to avoid prejudicing the outcome of their work or impact on the length of an inquiry in some other way.

Cycling: Sponsorship

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will hold discussions with representatives of British Cycling on the effect on the sport of Sky's decision to withdraw sponsorship for Team Sky.

Mims Davies: Sky’s withdrawal from their sponsorship of cycling at the end of 2019 is a commercial decision for them to make. Interest and participation in cycling across the UK has increased greatly since Team GB and ParalympicsGB’s wonderful achievements at London 2012. UK Sport’s support for British Cycling during the current Tokyo 2020 funding cycle remains unaltered by this decision.

Charities: Ethnic Groups

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has made an assessment of the implications for his policies of the finding in The Grant Givers' Movement report that trusts and foundations have a serious problem of bias against some charities led by people from ethnic minority backgrounds.

Mims Davies: The government believes firmly in the value and importance of diversity in the charity sector, including on boards and amongst trusts and foundations. I am confident that this view is shared by the sector, and that trusts and foundations will be looking at the findings of this report to identify what further action is needed and where lessons can be learned.

Charities: Holiday Leave

Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of introducing a statutory duty to allow trustees of Charities time off from work.

Mims Davies: The government hugely values the hundreds of thousands of people who give up their time to act as trustees across the country. We do not have any plans to introduce a statutory duty for trustees to be given time off from work at this time. However, as set out in the Civil Society Strategy, we are keen to work with partners in the charity sector to consider different ways to strengthen trusteeship.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Energy Performance Certificates

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what criteria his Department use to assess the cost-effectiveness of energy efficiency required to obtain EPC band C; and if he will make a statement.

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what criteria his Department use to assess the affordability of energy efficiency measures required to obtain EPC band C; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: The Clean Growth Strategy set out our aspiration that as many homes as possible will be upgraded to an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) Band C by 2035, where practical, cost-effective and affordable. Alongside the Clean Growth Strategy, we issued a call for evidence on building the market for energy efficiency, and will shortly be publishing an action plan, that will set out a range of measures to shape the market for the future in line with that aspiration. As part of the Action Plan we will set out our approach to meeting the criteria of cost-effectiveness and affordability set out in the aspiration.

Electricity: Costs

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Cost of Energy Review published in October 2017, what steps the Government is taking to reduce the cost of electricity.

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to ensure that the UK has the lowest energy prices in the EU.

Claire Perry: The Government has taken a range of actions to reduce the cost of energy – including protecting 11 million households from poor value energy tariffs through the introduction of a price cap, and providing a package of relief for energy intensive industries worth over £850 million since 2013, supplemented by the announcement of a £315 million Industrial Energy Transformation Scheme at the Budget. In his speech of 15th November (available on gov.uk), my rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy set out his strategic approach to ensure consumers get a fair deal for their energy, while opening up the market to competition.

Business: Energy

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to page 160 of the Industrial Strategy, published in November 2017, what progress his Department has made on reducing electricity prices for businesses.

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans the Government has to close the gap between industrial electricity prices in the UK and those in France and Germany.

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of the recommendations to close the gap between UK and EU industrial electricity prices for steel producers in the report, The energy price scandal, a fair power deal for UK steel, published by UK Steel in December 2018.

Claire Perry: The Government is committed to minimising energy costs for businesses to ensure our economy remains strong and competitive. The ability for our industries to be able to compete across Europe and globally is a priority for this Government.As set out in the recent energy speech by the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, the Government recognises that industrial electricity prices are currently higher than those in some competitor economies. The principles set out in the speech are intended to deliver policies that will lower the costs of the electricity system permanently and further details will be set out in a White Paper next year.At the same time as reducing the costs of electricity production, the Government wants to increase industrial energy efficiency. As announced in the Budget on 29 October 2018, £315 million is being provided for an Industrial Energy Transformation Fund to support industrial energy efficiency and decarbonisation projects to bring energy costs down for vital industries, including the steel sector. Furthermore, our Industrial Heat Recovery Support Programme is now open to applications for feasibility and/or preliminary engineering studies. We will publish our response to the consultation on widening eligibility for the exemption schemes for energy intensive industries in due course.Meanwhile, we are continuing to reduce the cumulative impact of energy and climate change policies on industrial electricity prices for key energy intensive industries. This includes a package of relief for these industries worth over £850 million since 2013, of which £271m has been provided to the steel sector in compensation to the steel sector as of 30 November 2018.We welcome the recent report by UK Steel regarding high electricity prices and will give its recommendations careful consideration.

Post Offices: Closures

Ellie Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the number of Crown Post Offices that will be closed following his announcement of 11 October 2018.

Kelly Tolhurst: My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy made no announcement on the Post Office on 11 October 2018. The Government recognises the critical role that post offices play in communities and for small businesses across the UK. This is why the Government committed to safeguard the post office network and protect existing rural services. The overall number of post offices across the UK remains at its most stable in decades with over 11,500 branches thanks to significant Government investment of over £2 billion since 2010. There is no closure or privatisation programme. While the Government sets the strategic direction for the Post Office, it allows the company the commercial freedom to deliver this strategy as an independent business.

Aircraft: Electric Motors

Steve Double: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to encourage the development of hybrid-electric aircraft.

Steve Double: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to encourage the development of battery-electric aircraft.

Steve Double: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to encourage the development of new air transport concepts.

Richard Harrington: As set out in our Industrial Strategy Government backs aerospace through its Aerospace Growth Partnership, which tackles barriers to growth, boost exports and grows high value jobs in the UK. This includes committing £1.95 billion to aerospace R&D until 2026. The UK is a global leader in aviation and aerospace innovation and, is already developing exciting new forms of transport. As announced at the Farnborough Airshow in July the Government is backing a £58m partnership between Airbus, Rolls-Royce and Siemens to develop a flight demonstrator for hybrid-electric propulsion for commercial aircraft. On 6th December as part of a new Sector Deal for Aerospace, the Government launched the Future Flight Challenge, which will provide up to £125 million of additional funding, which industry will match to support the development of new aircraft technologies and transport concepts – including hybrid-electric, electric and autonomous aircraft - to transform the future of transport as we utilise our airspace to ease congestion. Through the Future of Mobility Grand Challenge and alongside the Department for Transport’s forthcoming Aviation Strategy, we are exploring how these new technologies will change the way we travel, helping create the right conditions for the success of the UK’s aerospace and aviation industries.

Business: Scotland

Kirsty Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Scotland on businesses in Scotland deploying no-deal contingency plans as a result of the Government deferring the meaningful vote on the Withdrawal Agreement.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Business

Kirsty Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if his Department will make an estimate of the number of businesses deploying no-deal contingency plans as a result of the Government deferring the meaningful vote on the Withdrawal Agreement.

Kelly Tolhurst: Holding answer received on 17 December 2018



We do not want or expect a no deal scenario. We have agreed in principle the terms of the UK’s smooth and orderly exit from the EU, as set out in the Withdrawal Agreement. However, it is the duty of a responsible government to prepare business for a range of potential outcomes, and, as such, Government published 106 technical notices over the summer. Businesses have told us they will continue with no-deal contingency planning in light of these, and further guidance, until the agreement is finalised.

Civil Nuclear Constabulary: Pensions

Martin Whitfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when the equality impact assessment prepared by his Department on the pension proposals for the Civil Nuclear Police on behalf of the Department for Business, Energy, Energy and Industrial Strategy will be published.

Richard Harrington: The BEIS Equality Analysis on the CNC pension age will be published once all policy discussions on this matter are complete.

Nuclear Power

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans his Department has for the future of nuclear power in the UK as a result of the collapse of the NuGen consortium; and if he will make a statement.

Richard Harrington: This Government believes that new nuclear has an important role to play in the UK’s energy future as part of a diverse range of low-carbon technologies. However, we have always been clear that any technology must provide value for money for consumers and taxpayers. It was this Government that agreed a landmark Nuclear Sector Deal, as well as commissioning Hinkley Point C, the first new nuclear power station in a generation.

Companies House: Staff

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many staff were employed at companies house in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013, (e) 2014, (vi) 2015, (f) 2016, (g) 2017 and (h) 2018.

Kelly Tolhurst: The number of staff employed at Companies House is publicly available information. It is published annually in Companies House’s Annual Accounts and Report. These can be found here.

Business: Regulation

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the cost to businesses the delegated legislation relating to the possibility of the UK leaving the EU without a deal that have approved by Parliament.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

European Commission: Parliamentary Scrutiny

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans he has for parliamentary scrutiny of the responsibilities of the European Commission that will be transferred to the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy in relation to the Accounts and Reports (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018, which were laid before the House on 31 October 2018.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Global Navigation Satellite Systems: Operating Costs

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 6 December 2018 to Question 198212 on Global Navigation Satellite Systems: Costs, what assessment he has made of the annual running costs of the proposed Global Navigation Satellite System.

Chris Skidmore: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 200619. The annual running costs of the proposed GNSS will be assessed as part of the Engineering, Design and Development Phase (EDDP) which is currently underway.

Horizon 2020

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has plans for Horizon 2020 funding in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Chris Skidmore: As a responsible Government we continue to prepare to support UK science in all scenarios. In August 2016 the Government announced an underwrite guarantee. This is a commitment to underwrite Horizon 2020 funding for all successful UK bids submitted before Exit in the event of ‘no deal’. In a no deal scenario, the UK would become a third country participant in Horizon 2020 after the UK leaves the EU. As a third country, UK researchers and businesses would, from the date of exit, be able to apply to and participate in all Horizon 2020 calls open to third country participants from the date of exit. Third country participation is a well-established part of Horizon 2020 – entities from third countries currently participate in and lead consortia in a wide range of collaborative programmes. The Government announced an extension to the guarantee in July 2018 to cover successful UK bids to calls open to third country participation. This will cover funding for the lifetime of projects, even if they last beyond 2020.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: EU Law

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many in-flight files of EU legislation exist that effect the policy areas managed by his Department; and which in-flight files of EU legislation his Department intends to implement in UK law.

Jake Berry: The Official Journal of the European Union publishes upcoming EU legislation for implementation. This is publicly available online at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/oj/direct-access.html.During the time-limited implementation period, EU law will continue to apply in the UK subject to the terms set out in the Withdrawal Agreement. After the implementation period, all laws in the UK will be passed by our elected representatives in Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh and London. The Political Declaration recognises that the UK may choose to align with the EU’s rules in relevant areas to facilitate trade in goods or security cooperation.

Social Services: Children

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding local government receives to deliver children’s services.

Judith Cummins: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding allocated to local authorities for the provision of children’s services.

Rishi Sunak: Funding for local government services, including children’s services, is set at Spending Review. The Chancellor has announced that the next Spending Review will be in 2019 and decisions about the future funding of local government will be taken in the round.We are working with the Department for Education (DfE) and the sector to develop an understanding of children’s services costs and pressures, and to help local authorities innovate and reform services to achieve better quality and efficiency.In preparation for the Spending Review, and as part of the Government’s review of relative needs and resources, new, up-to-date formulas are being developed to ensure funding distribution to councils is based on the best available evidence. DfE and MHCLG have commissioned an ambitious data research project from independent contractors to inform this work.

Energy Performance Certificates

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many new Energy Performance Certificates band (a) A, (b) B and (c) C were issued in each of the last eight years.

Kit Malthouse: The number of Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) for domestic dwellings with an EPC rating band of (a) A, (b) B and (c) C issued over the last eight years can be found in Table D1 in the Energy Performance of Buildings Certificates in England and Wales: 2008 to September 2018 statistical release, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-energy-performance-of-buildings-certificates.

Members: Correspondence

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to respond to the letter of 15 November 2018 from the hon. Member for Croydon North on the use of combustible building materials after the Grenfell Tower fire.

Kit Malthouse: The Secretary of State has responded to the letter.

Sleeping Rough

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 10 December 2018 to Question 199419 on Sleeping Rough, how much funding his Department will provide to Streetlink in winter 2018.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: As previously noted, MHCLG have provided annual funding of £300,000 to StreetLink since it was launched in 2012. This annual funding arrangement is the most effective method to support the running and development of the service, including preparing for and responding to the peak in demand during the winter period. We, therefore, do not provide additional funding during the winter period. Last winter, StreetLink made significant improvements to the website and app and these continue to be reviewed to improve capability. StreetLink is also supported through the recruitment of dedicated and hardworking volunteers. MHCLG works closely with Homeless Link and St Mungo’s, the organisations responsible for StreetLink, to ensure the service continues to run effectively.StreetLink provides early intelligence to local homelessness services helping to get people off the streets as quickly as possible. However, we know this is only the first step and this response relies on other vital services. On 31 October, we launched the Cold Weather Fund of up to £5 million, for all local authorities to provide a robust, local response to support rough sleepers off the streets prior to the impending winter period. This is available now until March 2019.The Government is committed to reducing homelessness and rough sleeping. No one should ever have to sleep rough. That is why this summer we published the cross-government Rough Sleeping Strategy. This sets out an ambitious £100 million package to help people who sleep rough now but also puts in place the structures that will end rough sleeping once and for all. The Government has now committed over £1.2 billion to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping over the spending review period.

Housing: Contruction

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much has been disbursed on the land assembly fund since its announcement in Autumn Budget 2017.

James Brokenshire: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Housing: Construction

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much of the £8 billion of new guarantees to support housebuilding announced in Budget 2017 has been spent.

James Brokenshire: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Owner Occupation

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of inequalities in home ownership by (a) social class, (b) age and (c) ethnicity.

Kit Malthouse: In July 2018, the department published an English Housing Survey report which examined, among other things, the extent to which certain groups are more or less likely to own their own home: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/english-housing-survey-2016-to-2017-variations-in-housing-circumstances .

Letting Agents

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Paragraph 66 of the consultation paper entitled, Protecting consumers in the letting and managing agent market: call for evidence, published by his Department in October 2017, on what dates the meetings held by the Technical Group on an update of Section 20 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 took place.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: Section 20 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 Technical Group met on three occasions: 11 July 2017, 28 September 2017 and 20 April 2018.

Leasehold: Reform

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to include existing leaseholders in its analysis of the consultation on implementing reforms to the leasehold system.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: This Government is committed to tackling excessive and unjustifiable practices in the leasehold sector, making home ownership fairer for all. The technical consultation which closed on 26 November sets out how the Government intends to reform the system. The consultation document details proposals for banning leasehold houses and restricting ground rents in the future.The Government is also clear that existing unfair lease terms have no place in the housing market. It is right that developers who sold leaseholds with onerous terms should support their customers to amend such lease terms. Some developers have introduced assistance schemes which is welcome. The Government is engaging with industry to urge them to take proactive steps to vary leases for those with onerous ground rent clauses.We are further helping existing leaseholders by:Working with the Law Commission to make buying a freehold or extending a lease easier, quicker and cheaper;Making it easier for leaseholders to form Recognised Tenants' Associations so they can hold the management of their block to account;Setting up a Working Group, chaired by Lord Best, to look at how property agents can be improved, including a single, mandatory Code of Practice for managing agents and whether any fees should be capped or banned;Publishing a 'How to Lease' guide for consumers.

Leasehold: South Yorkshire

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many leasehold properties there are in South Yorkshire.

Kit Malthouse: MHCLG does not currently have sub-national estimates of the number of leaseholds dwellings in England. National level estimates can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/estimating-the-number-of-leasehold-dwellings-in-england-2016-to-2017As part of on-going work to improve the release we will consider whether it is feasible to produce regional statistics in future statistical releases.

Landlords: Registration

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant the Answer of 27 February 2018 to Question 127973, what estimate he has made of the number of landlords not providing decent and well-managed accommodation.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The 2016 English Housing Survey (EHS) reports that 27 per cent of homes in the private rented sector failed to meet the Decent Homes Standard. The EHS also shows that the proportion of non-decent homes across all tenures has been declining steadily between 2006 and 2016, and that almost three quarters (72 per cent) of private renters were satisfied with the way that their landlord carried out repairs or maintenance.

Non-domestic Rates

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Provisional Local Government Finance Settlement, what process was used to choose the 15 local authority areas that will pilot the 75 per cent business rate retention in 2019-20.

Rishi Sunak: All applications for the 2019-20 business rates retention pilot programme were assessed against the criteria that was laid out in the ‘Invitation to Local Authorities in England to pilot 75 per cent Business Rates Retention in 2019/20’, published in July 2018.

Ministry of Defence

Defence: Procurement

Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when his Department plans to publish the Maximising Competition in Defence Procurement Strategy.

Stuart Andrew: The Ministry of Defence plans to publish the strategy for Maximising Competition in Defence Procurement in 2019, on completion of the acquisition review elements of the Modernising Defence Programme.

Unmanned Marine Vehicles: Costs

Martin Docherty-Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost to the public purse has been of the development of the ecoSUB-µ5-SVP vehicles to be deployed from HMS Enterprise.

Stuart Andrew: The ecoSUB-µ5-SVP vehicles were not developed as part of a defence contract. The vehicles were developed by industry, Planet Ocean, in collaboration with the National Oceanography Centre.

Reserve Forces: Recruitment

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to encourage people to join the reserve forces.

Mark Lancaster: The attractiveness of the offer that we are making to reservists in terms of challenge, opportunity and reward has improved markedly under the Reserves 2020 (FR20) programme, with access to modern equipment, better training opportunities, and improved remuneration and support.As part of FR20, each Service has its own strategy for encouraging people to join the Reserve Forces.The Royal Navy marketing strategy includes the use of media outlets to encourage potential candidates to visit the careers website, contact their call centre, or attend a Reserves Experience event, where they are able to engage with regional reserve units. The Navy introduced a seamless transfer process in 2015 called Project Firefly to encourage Regular Service Leavers to join the Maritime Reserves. This scheme has recently been expanded to attract former Regulars who have been outside the Service for two years or less.Recruitment for the Army Reserve is part of the wider Army 'Belonging' recruitment campaign. This campaign was enhanced in autumn 2018 through a bespoke Army Reserve video on demand campaign to encourage Army Reserve applications. The Army also seeks to attract Regular soldiers at the end of their full-time Service, and has introduced a range of financial incentives.Royal Air Force Reserve Squadrons are marketed nationally under the strap-line 'Royal Air Force Regular and Reserve'. Additionally, the RAF have produced an informative brochure about joining the RAF Reserves that is publicised via the RAF recruiting website, social media channels and is also available at Armed Forces Careers Offices.

Christmas Island: Radiation Exposure

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessments were made using beta, gamma and X-ray detection of likely alpha radiation contamination as a result of Operation Grapple Y at Christmas Island in 1958.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We are unable to locate any information related to your question.

War Pensions: Radiation Exposure

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of war pension applications claiming injury as a result of radiation exposure were (a) approved, (b) denied and (c) approved on appeal in each of the last five years.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Army: Young People

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 15 November 2018 to Question 190538 on Army: Young People, how many of those people who started basic training (a) completed basic training, (b) qualified, (c) dropped out before completing training and (d) qualified but have since left the armed forces.

Mark Lancaster: The number of those recruits that did not complete basic training, those that completed basic training and those that completed basic training who have subsequently left the Army are detailed in the table below. FY AppliedU18 Applicants who started Basic TrainingOf Which: Did not complete Basic TrainingOf which: Completed Basic TrainingOf which: Subsequently left the Army after completing Basic Training2013-142,7906502,1004802014-153,0006602,2703402016-172,3504001,72060 Figures are for Regular soldiers who were under the age of 18 at the time of their application. Some will have commenced basic training in subsequent years and will have turned 18 before starting.Figures are single Service estimates and are not official statistics produced by Defence Statistics.They have been rounded to 10 for presentational purposes; numbers ending in "5" have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias.

Armed Forces Day: Northern Ireland

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans his Department has to support Regional Armed Forces' Day events in Northern Ireland in June 2019.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Armed Forces Day events provide opportunities for the nation to show their support for our Armed Forces. These events are community-led and can come in many different forms, from the national event through to events organised by councils, ex-Service organisations, community groups and schools. These events can be followed on Twitter using #SaluteOurForces.The Ministry of Defence not only supports the National Event, which will be held next year in Salisbury on Saturday 29 June 2019, but also events throughout the United Kingdom. We invite local authorities and community organisations to consider hosting an event and to apply for funding from the Ministry of Defence on the dedicated Armed Forces Day website.To date, no events in Northern Ireland have been registered. Based on the very many successful events of previous years, we anticipate that the Ministry of Defence will be supporting approximately 300 events.

Scotland Office

Business: Scotland

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether he has plans to hold discussions with Cabinet colleagues on businesses in Scotland deploying no-deal contingency plans for after the UK leaves the EU.

David Mundell: We have always been clear that our aim is to have a deal in place so we can leave the EU on 29 March 2019. I regularly meet with Cabinet colleagues to discuss preparations for the UK as we exit the EU. We will continue to provide comprehensive information to businesses to help them prepare for EU Exit, as we continue to push for a deal but make sensible preparations for no-deal.

Business: Scotland

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if he will make an assessment of the financial effect on Scottish businesses of those businesses' contingency plans in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal; and if he will make a statement.

David Mundell: The Government has delivered on its commitment to provide appropriate analysis to Parliament with a robust, objective assessment of how exiting the EU may affect the economy of the UK, sectors, nations and regions in the long run. The analysis considers four analytical scenarios: the UK position set out in the July 2018 White Paper, a hypothetical FTA, an EEA-type relationship and a no-deal scenario. The analysis showed that the deal that has been agreed is the best deal on offer, when it comes to protecting jobs and our economy while also respecting the result of the referendum and realising the opportunities of Brexit.

Business: Scotland

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what representations he has received from businesses in Scotland on the financial effect of contingency plans made by those businesses in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

David Mundell: Delivering the deal is the Government’s top priority, and we do not want or expect a no-deal scenario. However, as we have said, a responsible government should prepare for every eventuality, including the possibility of no-deal. As part of these preparations I have held several cross sector round tables to hear representations from businesses in Scotland. These roundtables have included Food and Drink, Agriculture, Financial Sector and Fishing.

Department for International Trade

Department for International Trade: EU Law

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many in-flight files of EU legislation exist that effect the policy areas managed by his Department; and which in-flight files of EU legislation his Department intends to implement in UK law.

George Hollingbery: During the time-limited implementation period, EU law will continue to apply in the UK subject to the terms set out in the Withdrawal Agreement. After the implementation period, all laws in the UK will be passed by our elected representatives in Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh and London. The Political Declaration recognises that the UK may choose to align with the EU’s rules in relevant areas tofacilitate trade in goods or security cooperation. In the unlikely event that the backstop were to come into effect, a small fraction of EU rules applying today would apply in Northern Ireland and EU rules on state aid would apply in the UK. However, as the Withdrawal Agreement and the Political Declarationmake absolutely clear, we do not want or expect the backstop to be needed - and even if it ever were ever to come into effect, it would be strictly temporary. The Official Journal of the European Union publishes upcoming EU legislation for implementation. This is publicly available online: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/oj/direct-access.html.

UK Trade with EU

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment he has made of the effect of the WTO reforms proposed at the G20 summit in Argentina on UK trade with the EU after the UK leaves the EU.

George Hollingbery: At their Summit in Buenos Aires on 30 November – 1 December 2018, G20 Leaders agreed to support the necessary reform of the WTO to improve its functioning. The objective of the reform is to strengthen the WTO, which is the foundation on which the vast majority of global trade is conducted. Ensuring a stronger foundation for global trade will also benefit UK trade with the EU after the UK leaves the EU.

Department for Transport

Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency: Bullying

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for each People Survey undertaken in the (a) Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency and (b) Driving Standards Agency which proceeded it, what proportion of staff reported that during the past 12 months they had personally experienced bullying or harassment at work.

Jesse Norman: The data in the table below shows the proportion of staff for each People Survey undertaken by the (a) Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency and (b) the Driving Standards Agency, who have reported that during the past 12 months they had personally experienced bullying or harassment at work.  Proportion of staff DSADVSA2018 20%2017 21%2016 23%2015 22%2014 17%2013 17%201218% 201118%

Department for Transport: Buildings

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will list all the risk assessments conducted by officials of his Department relating to the Modernisation of Office Environment project; and whether trade union health and safety representatives were consulted for each of those risk assessments.

Jesse Norman: The Department has engaged Mace and their subcontractors to carry out Project Management and Full Design services in relation to the Modernising our Working Environment (MoWE) programme. Shore Engineering, who are a Corporate Approved Inspector authorised by the Government to carry out the building control and Principle Designer functions for building work anywhere in England and Wales, were appointed as a subcontractor to provide and collate specific information on risks or other such hazards identified during the Pre-Construction and Design stages of the project. Further Gensler (who are the Lead Designer and Architects) maintain design risk management registers. This information on risks will be completed by the end of RIBA stage 4 to be included in the Pre-Construction Information to the shortlisted tenderers. Once complete these registers will be shared with departmental trades unions. In addition, a risk assessment on Security Threat been carried out by Mace or their subcontractors on behalf of the Department. This has not been shared with trades unions.

Department for Transport: Buildings

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when officials of his Department plan to consult trade union health and safety representatives on (a) any further moves of staff of out of his Department’s Great Minster House headquarters building and (b) on future building works to be carried out in that building in 2019.

Jesse Norman: Officials from the Department will continue to engage with representatives from departmental trades unions at appropriate stages in the Modernising our Working Environment (MoWE) programme.

Cars: Public Footpaths

Alex Chalk: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what powers local authorities have to prevent cars parking on verges and footpaths.

Jesse Norman: Local authorities outside London have wide-ranging powers under the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 to make Traffic Regulation Orders to restrict or prohibit footway parking on designated lengths of highway or over a wide area. These restrictions will be shown to drivers using traffic signs and may be enforced by issuing Penalty Charge Notices. Local authorities may also use high kerbs or bollards physically to prevent cars mounting the pavement.

Trains

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much new capacity will be delivered by the 7200 new trains to come on to the rail network between 2014 and 2021; and how many of those new trains are like-for-like replacements of the existing stock.

Andrew Jones: The Industry set out in their rolling stock document (Long Term Passenger Rolling Stock Strategy 6th edition) that there will be more than 3,000 additional vehicles on the network by 2021 providing more capacity for passengers across the country. Passengers will see a step change in quality with the introduction of new fleets delivering modern travelling environments and features passengers expect.

Railways: Windsor

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the viability of private business proposals to build the Windsor link; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: In March this year we launched a call for ideas for market-led proposals to enhance the railway that are financially credible without government support. The department has now considered and responded confidentially to all proposals, amongst which included a Windsor link. We are now working with promoters whose proposals fell within the scope of this call for ideas to progress their schemes.

South Eastern Rail Franchise

Sir David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 11 December to Question 198250 on the South Eastern Rail Franchise, on what date in the New Year he plans to make the announcement on the successful bidder of the new South Eastern rail franchise by; and what steps he is taking to ensure that there will not be a delay in  the new operator taking over in April 2019.

Andrew Jones: The award for the next franchise will now be made in the new year. We are working to deliver the best possible outcome for passengers and taxpayers and are focused on delivering a successful outcome for the competition as soon as possible.

Railways: Disability

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what methodology his Department uses to assess the performance of franchises in relation to delivering a good service for disabled users.

Andrew Jones: As a condition of their licence, train operating companies must publish a Disabled People’s Protection Policy which sets out the level of service they will provide to disabled passengers. This must be approved by and is monitored by the independent regulator, the Office of Road and Rail (ORR), who have the powers to take enforcement action where that service is not provided. Furthermore, the ORR has recently launched a consultation on wide-ranging reforms to the Disabled People's Protection Policy designed to bring greater quality, consistency and reliability to Assisted Travel for disabled passengers. The proposed reforms include strengthening their monitoring of train operating companies obligations regarding provision of information on what assistance is available and how to obtain it. The Department also includes challenging customer satisfaction targets in Franchise Agreements for a range of key measures and regularly monitors performance against them. The targets incentivise train companies to deliver a consistently high-quality experience for all passengers, including disabled users, and where they are missed, operators must invest in improvements.

Railways: Standards

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what performance indicators his Department uses to measure the number of times that trains run by franchise operators have not stopped at a station as a result of a service already being late running.

Andrew Jones: Services that skip one or more stations for reasons the operator itself is responsible are considered as Part Cancellations within the Department’s Cancellation performance regime. This means they are counted towards the overall number of Cancellations any operator incurs against its benchmark. The Department does not routinely require any specific reason for a cancellation to be reported.

Air Space

Mr David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many controlled airspace infringements there have been in 2018.

Jesse Norman: There was a total of 1170 airspace infringements from 1 January 2018 – 31 October 2018. While all these infringements have the potential to cause a mid-air collision and can also cause disruption and inconvenience to passengers when flights are diverted, in general, the severity of these events is low. Figures for the rest of 2018 will be published once analysed by the Civil Aviation authority (CAA).

Motor Vehicles: Exhaust Emissions

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department is projected to meet its target proportion of new car sales to be ultra low emission vehicles by 2030.

Jesse Norman: The Government wants to see at least 50%, and as many as 70%, of new car sales, and up to 40% of new van sales being ultra low emission vehicles (ULEVs) by 2030. The Government’s role is to set the right framework for industry to bring forward the technologies to support this transition, and to encourage people to choose the cleanest vehicles. Price parity between conventional and ultra low emission vehicles, anticipated by many to be reached in the mid 2020s, will be a key factor. Given the many uncertainties in the adoption of new technologies, it is challenging to project progress against future levels of ambition. However, the Government actively tracks market developments and notes that ULEVs continue to increase their share of new registrations in the UK. In Quarter 3 of 2018, the number of plug-in grant-eligible cars registered for the first time in the United Kingdom was up by over 12% on the same quarter in 2017, and by 50% on the same quarter in 2016. The Department will keep under review progress towards its ambitions by 2025, and will consider what interventions are required if not enough progress is being made.

Electric Vehicles

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 27 November 2018 to Question 194792 on Electric Vehicles, if he will publish the internal assessment referred to in that Answer.

Jesse Norman: The Government’s internal assessment relies, in part, on commercially sensitive data from manufacturers and cannot be published for that reason.

Northern Rail

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with Northern Rail on improving the reliability of train services.

Andrew Jones: Ministers and officials have regular meetings with all of our Train Operating Companies and owning groups on franchise matters. In the case of Northern Rail, the Rail North Partnership (RNP) manages the Northern franchise on behalf of the Department and Transport for the North (TfN). Arriva Rail North operates the Northern rail franchise under a legally binding contract and is constantly monitored as to its contractual compliance.

Community Transport: Older People

Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) merits of community car club schemes and (b) potential of those schemes to increase the provision of community transport for older people.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Department is considering the potential of vehicle sharing to achieve transport objectives. We are researching consumer attitudes to car sharing, so we can better understand if there are any barriers that could be resolved. At present we have made no assessment of the specific merits of community car clubs or their potential to increase the provision of community transport for older people.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Mediterranean Sea: Rescue Services

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he plans to tackle the criminalisation of humanitarian assistance to migrants as evidenced by the recent seizure of the migrant rescue vessel Aquarius; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 05 December 2018.The correct answer should have been:

The UK Government is aware that, on 20 November 2018, Italian authorities issued a warrant for  of the seizure of the Marine Vessel Aquarius by the Italian authorities on grounds of waste pollution. According to the ship's operators, the vessel has been at the French port of Marseille since 4 October 2018 and, in the absence of a Flag State, is unable to leave port. Consequently the warrant has not yet been executed. It The vessel operated as a Search and Rescue vessel in the central Mediterranean by Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) 'SOS Méditerranée' and 'Médicins Sans Frontières' until September 2018. This matter is now subject to Italian legal processes and it is not appropriate for the UK Government to comment on the legal process initiated by the Italian authorities. We recognise the importance of Search and Rescue in the Mediterranean and value the contribution of NGOs in saving lives at sea. We are concerned about the increasing fatality rate that has coincided with the effective cessation of the Search and Rescue operations in the central Mediterranean due to the lack of assurances over safe disembarkation arrangements. We will continue to be involved with efforts to find a solution.

Sir Alan Duncan: The UK Government is aware that, on 20 November 2018, Italian authorities issued a warrant for  of the seizure of the Marine Vessel Aquarius by the Italian authorities on grounds of waste pollution. According to the ship's operators, the vessel has been at the French port of Marseille since 4 October 2018 and, in the absence of a Flag State, is unable to leave port. Consequently the warrant has not yet been executed. It The vessel operated as a Search and Rescue vessel in the central Mediterranean by Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) 'SOS Méditerranée' and 'Médicins Sans Frontières' until September 2018. This matter is now subject to Italian legal processes and it is not appropriate for the UK Government to comment on the legal process initiated by the Italian authorities. We recognise the importance of Search and Rescue in the Mediterranean and value the contribution of NGOs in saving lives at sea. We are concerned about the increasing fatality rate that has coincided with the effective cessation of the Search and Rescue operations in the central Mediterranean due to the lack of assurances over safe disembarkation arrangements. We will continue to be involved with efforts to find a solution.

Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 28 November 2018 to Question 194629, what medals UK citizens who serve in OSCE missions are eligible to receive.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Government supports recognition for UK civilians serving overseas, including via the OSCE Medal which is awarded annually to individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the cause of security and cooperation in Europe. It is a civilian, not a military award.

Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 28 November 2018 to Question 193427 on Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, on how many occasions under the trilateral Agreement of 6 September 1976 between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the European Atomic Energy Community and the Agency in Connection with the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, notifications were made by the UK of withdrawal of nuclear materials from safeguards for national security reasons in each of the last 30 years.

Sir Alan Duncan: Information on withdrawals of nuclear material from 1978 until 1999 was provided in response to a PQ in July 2000 (OR column 1094W). Withdrawals year by year since 1999 are as follows: in 2000 there were 6; in 2001, 18; in 2002, 11; in 2003, 20; in 2004 19; in 2005, 17; in 2006, 16; in 2007, 31; in 2008, 19; in 2009, 15; in 2010, 14; in 2011, 17; in 2012, 19; in 2013, 34; in 2014, 18, in 2015, 29; in 2016, 44 and in 2017 there were 35 withdrawls. Information on withdrawals was published annually on the Department of Trade and Investment (DTI) website from 2001 then on the Health and Safety Executive website from 2007 and is now published on the website of the Office for Nuclear Regulation.

Yemen: Humanitarian Aid and Security

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the (a) security and (b) humanitarian situation in Dimit, Yemen; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: The British Government is concerned at reports of fighting in Damt in recent weeks. Damt is assessed by the UN as experiencing high access constraints, meaning humanitarian operations are faced with great difﬁculty in delivering assistance due to active conflict, insecurity and bureaucratic impediments. We continue to urge all parties to the conflict to do all they can facilitate rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access across the country.

Thailand: Refugees

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the Thai Government on the treatment of (a) Karen and (b) Shan refugees in that country.

Mark Field: The British Government pays close attention to the situation of Karen and Shan refugees in nine camps along Thailand's border with Burma. DFID has committed to spend £6.7 million over the period 2016-2020 to support these camps. Our Ambassador to Burma, DFID staff from Burma and an official from the British Embassy Bangkok visited Mae La and Ban Mai Nai Soi camps in October 2018 and also met representatives of the Shan, Karenni and Karen communities to stress the UK's commitment to Burma's peace process. Our Embassy in Bangkok has asserted in meetings with the Thai Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Foreign Affairs that conditions are not in place for these refugees to return to Burma.

Cameroon: Humanitarian Aid

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his French Government counterparts on the humanitarian crisis in Cameroon.

Harriett Baldwin: ​The UK is deeply concerned about the situation in Cameroon and the deteriorating security situation in the Anglophone regions of the country. I have discussed the violence in the Anglophone regions with French Minister Lemoyne, including ways in which we can together work with international partners to encourage and support efforts to resolve the Anglophone crisis. Officials are also in frequent contact.

Venezuela: Military Aircraft

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs,  if he will hold discussions with his counterpart in the US Government on that Government's response to the deployment of two Russian Tu-160 strategic bombers to Venezuela.

Sir Alan Duncan: FCO Ministers speak regularly to their US counterparts about issues of global security including Russian activity. The Government of Venezuela should focus on alleviating the humanitarian suffering of their people rather than hosting Russian military aircraft.

Dag Hammarskjöld

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to assist the UN investigation into the death of former UN Secretary General Dag Hammarskjöld.

Sir Alan Duncan: The UK has co-operated closely with the Dag Hammarskjold inquiry. In 2017, in response to the request of the Inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of Dag Hammarskjold, the Government undertook further searches of its archives in order to identify additional information of potential interest to the Inquiry. Additional information was passed to the Inquiry in June 2017. The Government is satisfied that it holds no further information of direct relevance to the Inquiry.

China: Human Rights

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs,  what recent discussions he has had with his Chinese counterpart on the human rights situation in Ughyur.

Mark Field: We have serious concerns about the human rights situation in Xinjiang and the Chinese Government’s deepening crackdown; including credible reports of re-education camps and widespread surveillance and restrictions targeted at ethnic minorities.During China’s Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council on 6 November, the UK made a statement which described our concern about the treatment of ethnic minorities in China, including Uyghurs. We issued a specific recommendation, calling on China to implement the recommendations by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on Xinjiang, and to allow the UN to monitor the implementation. We also raised our concerns about Xinjiang in our Item 4 statement at the September UN Human Rights Council, and we supported the statement of 26 October by the European External Action Service highlighting concerns about Xinjiang.I raised our concerns about Xinjiang with Vice Minister Guo Yezhou during my visit to China on 22 July 2018. The Foreign Secretary, also raised our concerns about the region with Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his visit to China on 30 July 2018.

Pakistan: Conflict, Stability and Security Fund

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much non-official development assistance funding has been allocated through the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund to the Rule of Law Programme in Pakistan.

Mark Field: £1.07m non-official development assistance funding has been spent through the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) by the Rule of Law Programme in Pakistan from financial years 2015/16 to 2018/19. The UK government’s CSSF programmes in Pakistan have supported the reform of the criminal justice system, including the investigation and prosecution of serious crimes, in a manner that is compliant with human rights. All programmes have robust measures in place to protect the human rights of beneficiaries, including a wide range of measures and evidence to assess and analyse risk ahead of starting a programme. They also receive robust scrutiny to ensure all spend represents value for money for UK taxpayers and are in line with our foreign policy objectives. ​

Pakistan: Conflict, Stability and Security Fund

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether a human rights risk assessment has been undertaken for the Conflict, Stability and Security Rule of Law Programme in Pakistan; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Field: £1.07m non-official development assistance funding has been spent through the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) by the Rule of Law Programme in Pakistan from financial years 2015/16 to 2018/19. The UK government’s CSSF programmes in Pakistan have supported the reform of the criminal justice system, including the investigation and prosecution of serious crimes, in a manner compliant with human rights. All programmes have robust measures in place to protect the human rights of beneficiaries, including a wide range of measures and evidence to assess and analyse risk ahead of starting a programme. They also receive robust scrutiny to ensure all spend represents value for money for UK taxpayers and are in line with our foreign policy objectives. ​

China: Foreign Trade

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his counterpart in the Chinese Government on (a) the Belt and Road initiative and (b) the effects of that initiative on (i) Malaysia, (ii) Myanmar and (iii) Sri Lanka.

Mark Field: The Foreign Secretary last discussed the Belt and Road initiative with his Chinese counterparts on 30 July 2018, when he visited Beijing for the annual UK-China Strategic Dialogue with State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi. I discussed the initiative with my counterpart Vice Minister Guo in Beijing on 22 July. Both sides confirmed the view expressed during the Prime Minister’s visit to China in January, that the UK and China are well placed to cooperate on the Belt and Road initiative. The Foreign Secretary and I both stressed the importance of the initiative developing in line with international standards, and highlighted the UK’s unique expertise in this area. No specific third countries were discussed.​

Yemen: Peace Negotiations

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress has been made in the Yemen peace talks.

Alistair Burt: ​We welcome the consultations which began in Stockholm on 6 December, and which the Foreign Secretary attended on 13 December. The Yemeni Government and the Houthis agreed on a ceasefire and redeployments of forces in Hodeidah Governorate, an exchange of prisoners, and an understanding on easing the situation in Ta'iz. They also agreed to engage in further discussions on a Framework establishing the principles for inclusive negotiations aimed at ending the conflict in Yemen - the worst humanitarian crisis in the world today.

Department for International Development

Kenya: Marie Stopes International

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what representations she has received on allegations that Marie Stopes International is performing illegal abortions in Kenya; and if she will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: The UK does not currently fund Marie Stopes International to provide any abortion services in Kenya. Marie Stopes International are a valued partner in our comprehensive Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights work. We have seen no evidence of any illegal activity on their part and no formal allegations have been made to us.

Developing Countries: Abortion

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what her Department's policy is on working with delivery partners providing abortion schemes that are illegal in the target countries.

Alistair Burt: Women must have the right to make their own decisions about their sexual and reproductive health and well-being and we believe the best way to eliminate unsafe abortion is to improve access to family planning information, services and supplies. DFID’s policy on safe abortion takes an evidence-based, public health approach that aims to reduce death and disability caused by unsafe abortions. In countries where abortion is permitted, we can support programmes that make safe abortion more accessible in order to save the lives of women who would otherwise risk death or disability through backstreet abortions. We do not support any activity that is against local laws.

Developing Countries: Marie Stopes International

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much funding from the public purse has been provided to Marie Stopes International for work in countries outside the UK in each of the last twenty years.

Alistair Burt: To date DFID has a grand total spend with Marie Stopes International of £241,162,224.57 as of financial year 2002/2003.

Kenya: Marie Stopes International

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether any funding provided by her Department to Marie Stopes International goes towards (a) the provision of and (b) advertising for abortion in Kenya.

Alistair Burt: No. The UK does not currently fund Marie Stopes International to provide any abortion services in Kenya.

Developing Countries: Abortion

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the level of incidences of funds from the public purse being used by delivery partners to fund schemes that are illegal in (a) Kenya (b) other developing countries.

Alistair Burt: DFID funds cannot be used to fund any illegal activities. We treat allegations of any improper use of funds extremely seriously. The process for reporting allegations is on our website: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-international-development.

Gaza: Immigration Controls

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what projects her Department supports to better facilitate health-related exit permits and medical delegations in Gaza.

Alistair Burt: In 2018 the Department for International Development provided £1.5 million to the International Red Cross Committee (ICRC) appeal which includes support to the capacity of eleven hospitals in Gaza. The ICRC has sent surgeons, nurses, and physiotherapists to Gaza to help the healthcare sector meet pressing health needs, including the large increase in injuries following the rise in violence since March. The UK government also supports Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI) through the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s Global Britain Fund. PHRI advocate for Palestinian patients who require access for medical care. Other activities include medical delegations to Gaza with specialists, supplying medical services and supplies to the population and the health authorities and performing essential surgeries. The delegations provide a wide range of medical services, and also joint training and seminars with medical professionals in the hospitals and health centers for Palestinian medical professionals in Gaza and Israel. The movement restrictions and the serious constraints imposed on Gaza impact the health of the population as well as the further development of quality health services. The UK Government regularly raises the matter of medical permits and access with the Israeli authorities.

Eritrea: Overseas Aid

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department has plans to allocate additional aid for Eritrea as a result of the lifting of international sanctions.

Harriett Baldwin: The United Kingdom welcomes the lifting of all UN sanctions relating to Eritrea, and the opportunities it creates for greater engagement between the international community and Eritrea. The Department for International Development’s budgets for future years have not yet been finalised. The UK has funded life-saving activity in Eritrea for several years, including providing £3.24m in 2018-19 to help treat malnutrition in under-fives and provide access to safe hygiene and sanitation services.

Africa: Female Genital Mutilation

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether his Department has set joint targets with African Governments on ending female genital mutilation.

Alistair Burt: All member states of the United Nations have jointly agreed the target on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) set out in Sustainable Development Goals; to eliminate FGM by 2030. The UK government is committed to supporting African efforts to achieve this shared goal, and last month we were proud to announce a new £50 million package to support an African-led movement to end to FGM by 2030 – the biggest single investment by an international donor.

Burma: Rohingya

Carol Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much her Department has spent on ending violence against children in the Rohingya.

Carol Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to monitor its spending on ending violence against children in the Rohingya crisis.

Alistair Burt: We remain concerned by the risk of violence to Rohingya children in Bangladesh. Of our latest £70m funding to the Rohingya crisis, up to 18% is devoted to protection of rights for refugees, including prevention and monitoring of exploitation and abuse, support to survivors of sexual and gender based violence and strong safeguarding and referral practices by service providers in the camps. This includes: 30 child friendly spaces to support children with protective services and psychosocial and psychological support; child protection monitoring systems in camps; and support to survivors of violence and trafficking. We have funded improved camp lighting to help keep the most vulnerable Rohingya safer. DFID conducts thorough due diligence processes with all funding and will only work with partners with strong safeguards in place. Approximately 600,000 Rohingya, including children, are still in Rakhine State and are vulnerable. The UK supports agencies that have access to those that remain, such as International Committee of the Red Cross. The UK continues to press for unhindered humanitarian access to Rakhine State.

Yemen: Famine

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment her Department has made of the implications for her policies of the recent integrated food security and classification (IPC) report on Yemen which showed 240,000 civilians are living in famine-like conditions; and if she will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: The newly published Integrated Phase Classification (IPC) Report highlights growing food insecurity in Yemen over the past year, with the overall number of food insecure people rising from 17 million to over 20 million (70% of the population). For the first time, there are people (238,000) in the most severe food security category, IPC 5 - at high risk of death. In response urgent action is needed to improve economic conditions and maintain food supply chains into and throughout the country, including Hodeidah and Saleef ports and routes out of the city. As we have consistently made clear, all parties must ensure that Hodeidah and Saleef ports and onward supply routes are kept open, and commercial and humanitarian flows are not disrupted. The UK is playing a leading role in combating hunger in Yemen through our £170 million in aid this financial year, which will help meet the food needs of four million Yemenis for one month. However, a political settlement is the only way to bring long-term stability to Yemen and to address the worsening humanitarian crisis. We therefore welcome the positive outcomes of peace talks in Stockholm.

Yemen: Humanitarian Aid

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to ensure effective delivery of humanitarian aid (a) into and (b) throughout Yemen.

Alistair Burt: We welcome the positive outcomes of peace talks in Stockholm, with both sides agreeing a ceasefire in Hodeidah and committing to withdraw troops from the port and city. A political settlement is the only way to bring long-term stability to Yemen and to address the worsening humanitarian crisis. Red Sea ports remain operational and continue to import most of the food and fuel on which Yemenis rely. The UK is providing £1.3 million to the UN Verification and Inspection Mechanism to increase physical inspections of commercial ships, and ensure that weapons are not entering the country illegitimately. As we have consistently made clear, all parties must ensure that Hodeidah and Saleef ports and onward supply routes are kept open, and commercial and humanitarian flows are not disrupted.

Yemen: Famine

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to respond to the risk of famine in Yemen; and if she will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: The newly published Integrated Phase Classification (IPC) Report highlights growing food insecurity in Yemen over the past year, with the overall number of food insecure people rising from 17 million to over 20 million (70% of the population). In response urgent action is needed to improve economic conditions and maintain food supply chains into and throughout the country, including Hodeidah and Saleef ports and routes out of the city. To maintain confidence of commercial importers, the UK recently worked with the US, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to agree measures with the Central Bank of Yemen to issue letters of credit providing foreign currency so that importers can purchase food on international markets. This has resulted in an appreciation of the Yemeni Riyal, so that ordinary Yemenis are able to buy food that is in the markets. The UK is playing a leading role in combating hunger in Yemen through our £170 million in aid this financial year, which will help meet the food needs of four million Yemenis for one month. However, a political settlement is the only way to bring long-term stability to Yemen and to address the worsening humanitarian crisis. We therefore welcome the positive outcomes of peace talks in Stockholm.

Yemen: World Food Programme

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment her Department has made of the implications for her policies of the World Food Programme announcement that there has been a nearly 50 per cent decrease in operations at Hodeidah port in recent weeks.

Alistair Burt: Red Sea Ports are currently operational and continue to import most of the food and fuel on which Yemenis rely. For most of this year imports have been robust and in some cases exceeded pre-war levels. We are however concerned about recent reports of a reduction of imports into Yemen. To maintain confidence of commercial importers, the UK recently worked with the US, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates to agree measures with the Central Bank of Yemen to issue letters of credit to provide foreign currency so that importers can purchase food on international markets. This will help strengthen imports. It has also resulted in an appreciation of the Yemeni Riyal, increasing the purchasing power of ordinary Yemenis. It is imperative the Red Sea ports of Hodeidah and Saleef remain operational. Yemen relies on imports to meet 90% of its basic needs like food and fuel. We therefore welcome the positive outcomes of peace talks in Stockholm. A political settlement is the only way to bring long-term stability to Yemen and to address the worsening humanitarian crisis.

Yemen: Humanitarian Aid

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment her Department has made of the effect of the continued military offensive on Hodeidah port on the delivery of humanitarian aid in Yemen.

Alistair Burt: We welcome the positive outcomes of peace talks in Stockholm. A pause in fighting around Hodeidah has been in place since 14 November. As we have consistently made clear, all parties must ensure that Hodeidah and Saleef ports and onward supply routes are kept open, and commercial and humanitarian flows are not disrupted. UK aid partners continue to deliver life-saving support in Hodeidah as part of our £170 million response in Yemen this year, including access to 75,000 litres of clean water a day, and cash transfers to 21,000 people displaced from Hodediah.

Department for Education

Trade Unions: Training

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has for (a) the Union Learning Fund and (b) other trade union workplace training programmes after the UK leave the EU.

Anne Milton: We will continue to provide support to Unionlearn and the Union Learning Fund for the remainder of the current financial year and for the next. The total funding for Unionlearn for the financial year of 2018/19 and for 2019/20 is £24 million. Funding for the financial year of 2020/21 onwards will be decided as part of the normal spending review process.The Trades Union Congress will continue to have an important role as part of the National Retraining Partnership, alongside the Confederation of British Industry and Government. The Partnership sets the strategic direction of the National Retraining Scheme, an ambitious, far-reaching programme to drive adult retraining.

Interserve

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what contingency plans his Department has to protect apprentices in the event of the collapse of Interserve.

Anne Milton: Holding answer received on 13 December 2018



In the event of a provider failure, the Education and Skills Funding Agency has a well-established approach to managing learner transfers, including establishing a dedicated taskforce of staff from within the agency who are experienced in managing this type of situation. The team will ensure learners and apprentices secure alternative high-quality provision in order to continue their apprenticeship or learning with minimum disruption and provide support to affected employers and apprentices.

Interserve

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many apprentices are currently receiving training from Interserve Learning and Employment.

Anne Milton: Holding answer received on 13 December 2018



Interserve Learning and Employment (Services) Limited currently have 4,567 apprentices on programme based on their latest Individual Learner Record return, as of November 2018.

Higher Education: Admissions

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the findings of the Sutton Trust's report of 7 December 2018, Access to Advantage, what steps his Department is taking to increase the proportion of state school pupils applying to study at Oxbridge universities.

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the findings of the Sutton Trust's report of 7 December 2018, Access to Advantage, what steps his Department is taking to tackle regional inequalities in gaining a place at an Oxbridge university.

Chris Skidmore: Widening participation to Higher Education (HE) is a priority for this government. Everyone with the capability to succeed in HE should have the opportunity to benefit from a university education, regardless of background or where they grew up.This year, record rates of English 18 year olds, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds, have entered full-time university. However, more could and should be done. That is why, in our first guidance to the Office for Students, we asked them to encourage providers, particularly the most selective, to make further progress in ensuring that disadvantaged and underrepresented students can access, participate and succeed in HE.A new transparency condition will require HE providers to publish application, offer, acceptance, non-continuation and attainment rates by socio-economic background, gender and ethnicity. This will provide greater transparency and help drive fairness on admissions and outcomes.Prior attainment is a critical driver of access to HE and the government has asked HE providers to take on a more direct role in helping to raise attainment in schools as part of their outreach activity. All universities are expected to help raise attainment and support school improvement, including through school sponsorship and by establishing new state schools.The National Collaborative Outreach Programme (NCOP) targets those areas of the country where progression into HE is both low overall and lower than expected (given typical GCSE attainment rates), in order to increase the number of young people from under-represented groups who go into higher education.The department’s Opportunity Areas initiative is part of the government’s national plan for dealing with social mobility through education. The government expects universities to actively engage in these areas, to tackle local barriers.In addition, the department launched Opportunity North East – a £24 million investment to drive rapid and sustainable improvements in education, to tackle the key issues holding young people back. We will challenge the most selective institutions to do more to increase the number of young people from the region.

Schools: Notice Boards

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make and assessment of adequacy of the guidance issued to schools, local education authorities and other responsible bodies to ensure that classroom notice boards are installed correctly and in accordance with fire standards that are legally compliant.

Nick Gibb: The Department’s guidance documents, under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, highlight schools’ responsibilities to carry out risk assessments for their Fire Safety Management Plans.The Department also specifies the fire safety requirements for notice boards in the ‘Output Specification’ documents that set out the design and construction requirements for all Department for Education delivered school buildings. In order to fully address the issue, the Department needs to carry out background research. Should the research show there is further guidance to give, the Department would then update the Output Specification and consider releasing a technical note to responsible bodies on the specification and installation of noticeboards.

Academies

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the total cost to the public purse has been of converting local authority schools to academy schools since 2010.

Nadhim Zahawi: As of 1 December 2018, there are 7,814 open academies.During the last nine financial years, the department has spent £443 million on pre-opening start-up grants to support local authority schools to convert to become academies. Further details are found in the table below: Financial YearCosts2018-19 (as at end November 18)£17 million2017-18£38 million2016-17£54 million2015-16£28 million2014-15£48 million2013-14£59 million2012-13£65 million2011-12£67 million2010-11£67 millionTotal£443 million

Schools: Apprentices

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many schools paying the apprenticeship levy have taken on apprentices since that levy was introduced.

Anne Milton: The apprenticeship levy was introduced in April 2017. Information on the number of schools that have paid the apprenticeship levy is not available in the format requested as data on the apprenticeship levy is reported to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs via the Pay As You Earn scheme rather than by organisation.​As reported in the statistics publication “Public sector apprenticeships in England: 2017 to 2018” (available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/public-sector-apprenticeships-in-england-2017-to-2018), there were approximately 6,300 apprenticeship starts in schools between May 2017 and March 2018. Many of these apprenticeship starts will be funded by the apprenticeship levy directly or via local government. Around half of the 6,300 starts were in local authority maintained schools

Schools: Apprentices

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect on school budgets of the requirement to pay the apprenticeship levy.

Nick Gibb: The Department published a technical note in February on school costs, which included an estimate of the cost pressure on schools due to the introduction of the apprenticeship levy. This note can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/schools-costs-technical-note. The Department estimated that over 16,000 schools (three-quarters of the total) would pay the apprenticeship levy.Schools are encouraged to use funds in their apprenticeship service accounts to pay for the training and assessment costs of apprentices they employ. The Department expects schools to benefit at a similar level to the costs of the levy. The Government provides a 10% top up to employers’ apprenticeship service funds, so that it is possible to receive more funding than is paid by way of the levy. Local authorities are expected to work closely with schools contributing to the levy to ensure they can access funding for apprenticeship training.

Children: Day Care

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department has made an assessment of (a) the cost to the public purse of increasing free childcare provision to all two year old and younger children, and (b) the economic effect of increasing free childcare provision.

Nadhim Zahawi: The government has no plans to extend the early learning for two-year-olds programme. However, the government does have a range of offers available to support parents with care for children under the age of 12 (or children with disabilities until the age of 17). The government is already supporting working parents of two-year-olds with middle or higher incomes. We have also introduced Tax-Free Childcare, which will be available to around 1.5 million households to help pay for childcare costs. Parents can also claim up to 85% of their childcare costs through Universal Credit. In September 2017, the government introduced 30 hours free childcare for working parents, which gave parents who qualified an additional 15 hours a week of free childcare. In September 2018, the department published an independent year one evaluation of 30 hours[1]. The evaluation showed that 30 hours is making a real difference to family finances with the majority of parents reporting that they had more money to spend (78%).Over a quarter of mothers said, they had increased their hours and more than one in ten (15%) stated they would not be working without the extended hours. These effects were stronger for lower income families. The study also showed that over half (51%) of providers increased staff hours or number of staff to deliver extended hours.   [1]https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/629460/Evaluation_of_early_implementation_of_30_hours_free_childcare_.pdf

Universities: Admissions

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Sutton Trust's report of 7 December 2018, Access to Advantage, what assessment his Department has made of the accuracy of that report's finding that independent school pupils are seven times more likely to gain a place at Oxford and Cambridge than non-selective state school pupils.

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Sutton Trust's report of 7 December 2018 entitled Access to Advantage, what assessment his Department has made of the accuracy of that report's finding that eight schools were responsible for 75 per cent of Oxbridge admissions.

Chris Skidmore: Widening participation to Higher Education (HE) is a priority for this government. Everyone with the capability to succeed in HE should have the opportunity to benefit from a university education, regardless of background or where they grew up. Recent UCAS data shows that whilst progress has been made, with record rates of disadvantaged students going to university, there is still a long way to go.The department publishes data on HE destinations. This shows that Key Stage 5 students from independent schools were around seven times more likely than Key Stage 5 students from non-selective state-funded mainstream schools to have an Oxford or Cambridge HE destination in 2016/17. This is the same as the Sutton Trust report. The figures also show that in over a third of mainstream schools and colleges, no students had an Oxford or Cambridge HE destination. These statistics consider students who attended these universities in the year after completing 16 to 18 study (entering A levels or other level 3 qualifications). They do not include students who entered Oxford or Cambridge following a gap year, or account for differences in the likelihood of completing level 3 qualifications.In our first guidance to the Office for Students (OfS), we asked them to encourage providers, particularly the most selective, to make further progress in ensuring that disadvantaged and under-represented students can access, participate and succeed in HE. The department now requires providers to publish application, offer and acceptance rates by gender, ethnicity and social background. We expect the OfS to shine a light on those not stepping up, and want to see it using the full range of levers at their disposal if necessary.

Apprentices: Northern Ireland

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate his Department has made of the amount of apprenticeship levy funding that will be allocated to Northern Ireland in 2019-20.

Anne Milton: Northern Ireland will receive their agreed share of the apprenticeship levy of £82 million in 2019/20. Northern Ireland will also receive an additional £3.8 million for apprenticeships in 2019/20, as announced in this year’s budget.

16-19 Bursary Fund: Carers

Judith Cummins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of formally identifying young adult carers as a vulnerable group in order to give them full access to the 16-19 bursary.

Anne Milton: It is very important that we make sure that young carers can participate in education and receive the support they need. However, financial need will vary significantly from family to family.The department keeps under review the use of the 16-19 Bursary Fund to inform our understanding of whether it is providing effective support to our most economically disadvantaged students.The defined vulnerable groups eligible for particular support from the 16-19 Bursary Fund are groups that generally do not receive financial support from their families. Young carers can receive help from the discretionary element of the 16-19 Bursary Fund, which is made available to education and training institutions. It is their role to determine which young people need bursaries and the level of financial support required to enable these students to participate.Young carers are able to discuss their particular needs with their school or college, which can then provide appropriate individualised support. Government guidance for those institutions is very clear about the need to encourage young carers to apply for the bursary fund, to reassure them about confidentiality and to consider whether they need extra help because of their caring responsibilities. Our view is that institutions are best placed to assess the needs of young carers, rather than making a decision at national level.

Carers: Children and Young People

Judith Cummins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to promote flexible and part-time apprenticeships for young carers.

Anne Milton: ​We know that some people experience barriers to undertaking full-time employment, such as managing caring responsibilities around a full-time role, so we have made it easier for part-time workers to undertake apprenticeships, such as those with caring responsibilities, including young carers and lone parents.Our apprenticeships funding rules allow flexible working arrangements. The minimum duration of the apprenticeship can be extended to make sure that working fewer than 30 hours a week is not a barrier to successfully completing an apprenticeship.

Children: Care Homes

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the (a) availability and (b) provision of children's residential care in (i) Coventry, (ii) the West Midlands and (iii) England.

Nadhim Zahawi: Ofsted, as the independent regulator, inspects all children’s homes to ensure they meet the standards outlined in the Social Care Common Inspection Framework and the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations (2015). At 30 September 2018, 82% of homes in England were judged good or outstanding. Ofsted publishes statistics on local authority inspection outcomes which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/local-authority-and-childrens-homes-in-england-inspections-and-outcomes-autumn-2018.Local authorities have a statutory duty to ensure there is sufficient accommodation available for the children that they look after. We are supporting local authorities in fulfilling this duty by providing funding as part of our £200 million Children’s Social Care Innovation programme to increase capacity and improve the commissioning of residential care placements. We are also establishing a residential care leadership board to drive improvements in the children’s residential care system in England.

Teachers: Pay

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect of the pay gap between teachers working in schools and further education colleges on the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of staff working in further education colleges; and if he will make a statement.

Anne Milton: ​It is essential that the further education (FE) sector is able to recruit and retain excellent teachers if we are to achieve a world-class technical education system in England. Due to the independent nature of the FE sector, and government’s historical relationship with it, we do not have detailed data on FE teacher pay, or on the wider FE workforce.We are undertaking work to understand the situation better, including the specific challenges and opportunities in relation to teacher recruitment and retention in the sector. This includes our recent College Staff Survey, which is helping us develop a better insight into the state of the teaching profession in FE and shows that more than half of all teachers have worked in the sector for ten years or more.We want to support the recruitment and development of FE teachers. This year we have launched our £5 million Taking Teaching Further programme to help attract talented and inspiring people with industry expertise to teach in FE. We have also announced our £8 million new bespoke professional development offer, T level Professional Development, to help existing teachers and leaders successfully deliver T levels.​Further, we have recently commissioned research on identifying FE teacher comparators, and on incentive programmes for the recruitment and retention on FE teachers, to better inform our thinking. The reports, and the results of the College Staff Survey, are available at GOV.UK.

Universities: Freedom of Speech

Chris Davies: What steps his Department is taking to support freedom of speech in universities.

Chris Skidmore: The government is deeply committed to protecting freedom of speech in Higher Education (HE). The Equality and Human Rights Commission and key partners in the HE sector worked with the previous Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation to develop a single piece of guidance which will set out key principles. This will enable universities and student unions to understand their obligations for protecting and supporting free speech.

Children: Social Services

Ian Austin: What recent discussions he has had with directors of children’s services on their ability to fulfil their statutory duties.

Nadhim Zahawi: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I regularly meet Directors of Children’s Services (DCS), and we have full and frank conversations on the delivery of children’s services. For example, just last week we met DCSs from Yorkshire and London. I understand the challenges facing the sector and I will continue to work with local government colleagues, particularly in advance of the next Spending Review.

Schools: Finance

Thangam Debbonaire: What assessment he has made of the sustainability of the current level of funding for schools.

Nick Gibb: With the additional £1.3 billion the Government has invested across this year and next, the core schools and high needs budget will increase from almost £41 billion in 2017-18 to £43.5 billion by 2019-20. The Government is committed to securing the right deal for education in the upcoming Spending Review.

Education

Deidre Brock: What recent discussions he has had with the Prime Minister on the effect on schools and universities of the UK leaving the EU.

Chris Skidmore: There are regular Cabinet discussions on the impact of leaving the EU. We are considering all aspects of how exiting the EU might affect education. This includes consideration of institutions’ access to European funding sources, participation in EU funded programmes, future arrangements for migration and arrangements for access to student finance support.

Leader of the House

Members: Allowances

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Leader of the House, what the cost to the House has been of payments made to hon. Members who have not taken their seats in the House in respect of their parliamentary duties in 2017-18.

Andrea Leadsom: Short Money is a payment made available from the House of Commons to all opposition parties in the House of Commons that secured either two seats, or one seat and more than 150,000 votes, at the previous General Election. Short Money is not available to parties whose Members have not sworn the oath. Therefore a separate scheme, Representative Money, was introduced in 2006 for parties whose Members had not taken the oath.The method of calculation is detailed in the comprehensive Library briefing note on the subject. https://researchbriefings.parliament.uk/ResearchBriefing/Summary/SN01663The amount paid out under representative money in 2017/18 was £149,707.51.All short money and representative money payments are published annually here: https://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-finance-office/Short%20money/Short%20Money%20Jun%2017-Mar%2018.pdf

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Hunting

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the risks to human and animals of trail hunts encroaching on roads and railway lines.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Newport West, Paul Flynn, on 26 February 2018, PQ UIN 128304.

Water Supply

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to improve water management in areas affected by (a) water shortages and (b) drought.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Environment Agency (EA) continues to support flexible abstraction for agriculture to support winter reservoir storage, irrigation and crop lifting. 60% of the 150 applications have been agreed this year. The EA continue to work with the National Farmers’ Union to help farmers prepare for 2019 through developing advice and running local drop-in surgeries to help farmers review their abstraction licensing needs. Water companies are following their drought plans. The EA continues to work closely with them to ensure they are taking actions in a timely manner. Such actions include awareness campaigns for their customers to use water wisely, reduce leakage, make changes to their network operations and seek additional water through applying for drought permits. Two companies (United Utilities and Yorkshire Water) have applied for drought permits since July.

Water Supply

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has plans to introduce financial incentives to encourage on-farm reservoirs to tackle water shortages in affected areas.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) Countryside Productivity Scheme offered grants towards the costs of constructing on-farm reservoirs. This scheme was open for applications between July 2017 and June 2018. The Agriculture Bill sets out the foundations for our future farming policy. The Bill includes powers to give financial assistance for a number of purposes. These purposes include managing the land or water in a way that protects or improves the environment, and improving the productivity of an agricultural, horticultural or forestry activity. We will continue to work closely with farmers, land managers, and other stakeholders as we develop our proposals for future schemes.

Water Supply

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has plans to increase investment in (a) the UK’s medium-term weather and (b) real-time water availability forecasting capability for farming to support drought planning.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: BEIS is the lead department on matters regarding weather and the Met Office.   The Met Office weather predictions feed into the UK Hydrological Outlook which describes likely river flows and groundwater levels over the coming season and is used to support flood and drought risk assessments and adaptation planning. The Met Office also supports the National Drought Group, of which the National Farmers Union (NFU) is a partner, by providing briefing on the latest seasonal outlook.   The Environment Agency (EA) is developing a digital water resources licensing service. A pilot to make river information available in near real time was successfully undertaken this year in priority catchments. Current plans are to implement this across the country ahead of summer 2019 to enable more abstractors to manage their water abstraction during periods of prolonged dry weather. This is an enhancement to current support to abstractors, for example provision of advice and daily river flow data by phone or email.

Agriculture: Seasonal Workers

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to his Department's paper entitled, Seasonal workers pilot: request for information, published in September 2018.

George Eustice: The paper entitled Seasonal workers pilot: request for information (RFI), published in September 2018, laid out the details of the Pilot explained Defra’s expectations of any potential Pilot Operators, and requested information from any organisation seeking to operate the Pilot to enable Defra to assess their suitability. The responses to the RFI were evaluated as part of the Pilot’s competitive selection process and two Pilot Operators were selected. The statement of changes to the Immigration rules laid out on 11 December 2018 names of the selected Pilot Operators.

Agriculture: Seasonal Workers

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with representatives from the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority on the seasonal workers pilot.

George Eustice: Defra officials are working closely with the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) on the Government’s seasonal workers pilot. The oversight and protection of workers was a central element of the selection process for Pilot Operators. The selected Pilot Operators were first publically announced in the Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules, which was laid on 11 December and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/statement-of-changes-to-the-immigration-rules-hc-1779-11-december-2018.   Officials will continue working closely with the GLAA over the two year operation of the Pilot. A key objective of the pilot is to ensure that migrant workers are adequately protected against modern slavery and other labour abuses. The operators of the scheme will be licensed by the GLAA. They will ensure that all workers are placed with farms who adhere to all relevant legislation, including paying the National Minimum Wage. Farmers will also be vetted to ensure that living and working conditions are of a suitable quality.

Agriculture: Seasonal Workers

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Seasonal Workers Pilot in the agricultural sector, how much time will be provided to the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority to develop a system for worker oversight and protection in the UK and overseas from the point at which Pilot Operators are chosen to the point at which the pilot starts to provide workers to growers and employers in the UK.

George Eustice: Defra officials are working closely with the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) on the Government’s seasonal workers pilot. The oversight and protection of workers was a central element of the selection process for Pilot Operators. The selected Pilot Operators were first publically announced in the Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules, which was laid on 11 December and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/statement-of-changes-to-the-immigration-rules-hc-1779-11-december-2018.   Officials will continue working closely with the GLAA over the two year operation of the Pilot. A key objective of the pilot is to ensure that migrant workers are adequately protected against modern slavery and other labour abuses. The operators of the scheme will be licensed by the GLAA. They will ensure that all workers are placed with farms who adhere to all relevant legislation, including paying the National Minimum Wage. Farmers will also be vetted to ensure that living and working conditions are of a suitable quality.

Waste Disposal

Anna McMorrin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many meetings his Department has held with compliance organisations  to discuss the forthcoming resources and waste strategy in 2018.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Department has met compliance schemes to discuss proposals for reforming the packaging producer responsibility system, which will be part of the forthcoming Resources and Waste Strategy.

Agriculture: UK Trade with EU

Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which trading partners will be the priority of agricultural trade policy after the UK leaves the EU.

George Eustice: The Political Declaration on the future relationship with the EU outlines the UK and EU’s commitment to a free trade area for goods, with no tariffs and no quotas. The Government also recently consulted on possible future free trade agreements with the United States, New Zealand, and Australia, as well as on the UK’s potential accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement on Trans-Pacific Partnership. We also want to work with other partners around the world to increase trade and investment flows and improve market access.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Business: North East

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what steps he is taking to ensure that businesses in the North East have the ability to (a) export and (b) trade with the EU in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Political Declaration sets out a plan for a free trade area for goods, including no tariffs, with ambitious customs arrangements. However, as a responsible government, we are planning for all scenarios.We are supporting trader readiness through 106 technical notices, communications from HMRC to businesses, and the cross-government Partnership Pack. The Border Delivery Group and Border Force have also visited key locations in the North East to discuss no deal planning.

Brexit

Neil Coyle: To ask the Attorney General, with reference to the ruling of the European Court of Justice that the UK can revoke Article 50 unilaterally, what assessment he has made of whether legislation is needed for the UK to revoke Article 50.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Government notes the judgment of the CJEU. But we have been clear that we will not be revoking Article 50. The British people gave the Government a clear instruction, and we will be leaving the EU on 29th March 2019.

Department for Exiting the European Union: Facebook

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to the Answer of 11 December 2018 to Question 199866, if he will publish the UK postcodes that were targeted by his Department for advertising on Facebook on the UK leaving the EU.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The department has not spent any money on advertising through it’s Facebook channel. Therefore, postcode targeting information is not held. The information in question 199866 relates exclusively to the departmental Twitter account however we can also confirm that no postcode targeting has taken place on this channel.

Attorney General

Hate Crime

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Attorney General, what assessment he has made of trends in the number of cases of alleged hate crimes ending before going to court as a result of such complaints being withdrawn.

Robert Buckland: In 2017-18, the number of non-convictions due to complainant retraction was 188, down from 198 the previous year. This accounted for 1.3% of all completed hate crime prosecutions. The Crown Prosecution Service is working closely with criminal justice partners to ensure the support offered to complainants and witnesses in hate crime cases is tailored to meet their individual needs.The majority of hate crime prosecutions (75.4%) result in a guilty plea from defendants, reducing the need for complainants and witnesses to give evidence in court. However, where live evidence is required, the CPS is committed to supporting them to give their best evidence. This includes consideration of whether they would benefit from special measures such as giving evidence behind a screen or via a video link.

Fraud: Liability

Kevin Hollinrake: To ask the Attorney General, what recent discussion he has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on proposals to reform the law on corporate liability for economic crime.

Robert Buckland: The Call for Evidence on Corporate Criminal Liability for Economic Crime contained a number of different options for reform, including a proposal to extend the failure to prevent offence to wider economic crimes other than bribery or tax evasion. The Government’s response is expected to be issued in 2019.

Suicide

Keith Vaz: To ask the Attorney General, whether a suicide note is classified as a legal document.

Robert Buckland: The Attorney General’s Office is not responsible for determining the legal status of any document. The legal status of a document would depend on a number of factors including the context it was being presented in.

Ministry of Justice

Prisons: Industrial Health and Safety

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of health and safety conditions in prisons for staff.

Rory Stewart: We do not underestimate the challenges faced by all staff working in prisons and continue to support our staff to help them maintain safe, decent and secure prisons. Standards of Health and Safety for prison staff are actively monitored, considered and acted upon on an ongoing basis. It is important to recognise that the health and safety of prison staff is closely influenced by the arrangements in place to manage the security, safety, conditions, behaviour and experience of prisoners in those same communities. Most recently, assessments relating to the risk of violence, fire safety, secondary impacts of drug misuse, staff wellbeing, infection and pandemic control and facilities are driving a range of improvement measures and activities that will influence prison staff’s experience of health and safety at their workplaces. In support of staff safety, we are now rolling out the use of PAVA spray and police style rigid bar handcuffs, which is in addition to other measures such as the increased staffing numbers and investment in drug and mobile phone detection should improve health and safety conditions in prisons.

Full Sutton Prison

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on local traffic levels of the proposed Category C prison at Full Sutton; and if he will make a statement.

Rory Stewart: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Prisons: Expenditure

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much the UK spends on prisons as a proportion of GDP in the 2017-18 financial year; and how that figure compares to the (a) G7 and (b) EU average.

Rory Stewart: The Ministry of Justice is responsible for prisons in England and Wales only and does not hold or collate overall UK prison spend. Responsibility for prisons in Scotland and Northern Ireland lies with the Scottish Government and Northern Ireland Executive respectively. For prisons in England and Wales the overall resource expenditure, which includes net expenditure met at regional or national level, recorded in the annual accounts of HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) for financial year 2017-18 was £3,180,266,865. This includes public and contracted prisons. The Ministry does not collate or hold direct economic or international comparisons for these figures. GDP data is held for the UK as a whole. As prison spend and GDP information are held on different bases it is not possible to use HMPPS prison spend to estimate the proportion of GDP spent on prisons for England and Wales. The Office for National Statistics reports a nominal, seasonally adjusted UK figure of £2,059,331m as at 9 November 2018 which can be used as context. This information can be accessed at:https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/timeseries/ybha/pn2?referrer=search&searchTerm=ybha Additional information on prison expenditure for prisons can be accessed on the Prison and Probation Performance Statistics pages for each financial year on the www.gov.uk website. The most recent published figures for financial year 2017-18 can be accessed via the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/prison-performance-statistics-2017-to-2018.GDP data is also available from the Office of Budget Responsibility and can be accessed on their website at: https://obr.uk/data/.

Prisoners' Transfers

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of allowing a submission from (a) victims and (b) their families to be considered as part of the decision making process by the Parole Board in relation to a recommendation to transfer an offender to open prison.

Rory Stewart: Decisions on transferring prisoners to open conditions are made by the Secretary of State for Justice. For those prisoners serving indeterminate sentences, this decision will be taken following a recommendation made by the Parole Board. In these cases, victims are able to submit a Victim Personal Statement to the Parole Board. Where there is an oral hearing to consider the case, the victim may choose to attend the hearing to read their statement to the panel in person. The Government published its Victims Strategy on 10 September and has committed to review the entitlements of victims and their families when going through the parole process.

Ministry of Justice: Chief Scientific Advisers

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many meetings he had with his Department’s Chief Scientific Adviser between 1 September and 30 November 2018.

Edward Argar: The responsibilities of a Chief Scientific Advisor are performed by the Director of Analysis in the Ministry of Justice. The Director of Analysis attended meetings with the Secretary of State on two occasions between 1 September and 30 November 2018.

Full Sutton Prison

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what alternative locations his Department considered before the decision was taken to build a new Category C prison at Full Sutton.

Rory Stewart: The department remains committed to previously announced plans, subject to planning approvals, value for money and affordability, to build six category C modern prisons including on the sites of former prisons at Wellingborough and Glen Parva, on land adjacent to HMP Full Sutton, a new site in South Wales, and the redevelopment of existing prisons at Hindey and Rochester. The new prisons will all provide modern, fit for purpose category C accommodation and are planned to be built in locations where the department has identified the greatest need for this type of capacity. The MoJ began its assessment of options for delivering new prisons through the Prison Estate Transformation Programme (PETP) in 2016 which focused on MoJ owned sites that had the potential to accommodate new custodial space and could deliver on the objectives of the PETP including meeting demand. In addition, the department wrote to local authorities across England and Wales resulting in the identification of 39 potential sites suitable for a prison development which were each assessed against a pre-determined criteria. A revised Outline Planning Application for a new, modern category C prison at Full Sutton has been submitted to East Riding of Yorkshire planning authority and documents making up the application, will be publicly available on the local authority’s planning portal in the coming days. We will continue to engage with local stakeholders as we develop our plans for the new prison which forms a crucial part of the department’s commitment to deliver modern, safe and decent accommodation.

Dangerous Driving: Sentencing

Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the Government plans to implement its proposals for longer sentences for drivers who cause death by (a) speeding, (b) racing and (c) using a mobile phone.

Rory Stewart: The government is committed to making sure that the courts have sufficient powers to deal with driving offences appropriately and proportionately. In the response to the consultation on driving offences and penalties relating to causing death or serious injury, published in 2017, the government proposed to increase the maximum penalties for causing death by dangerous driving and causing death by careless driving when under the influence of drink or drugs from 14 years’ imprisonment to life. We will bring forward proposals for changes in the law as soon as parliamentary time allows. These proposals will take account of, and incorporate, all of government’s proposals for safer roads, including any arising from the Department of Transport’s review of cycle safety.

Cabinet Office

Ministers: Resignations

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many investigations into Secretary of State resignations there have been in the last five years.

Chloe Smith: The Cabinet Office do not investigate resignations by Secretaries of State.

Elections: Disclosure of Information

Layla Moran: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what progress he has made on implementing the proposals to remove the requirement for candidates standing as local councillors to have their home addresses published on the ballot paper.

Chloe Smith: We have consulted electoral stakeholders on changes to deliver, and to go beyond, the recommendation from the Committee on Standards in Public Life to remove the requirement that the home address of candidates for local council elections must appear on the ballot paper. We will be laying statutory instruments before Parliament shortly that will apply the changes to elections of local councillors, parish councillors, Combined Authority Mayors and local mayors.

Elections: Reform

Tommy Sheppard: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans he has in place for his work stream on electoral reform in preparation for the UK leaving the EU.

Chloe Smith: The Government will continue to keep the electoral system under review and where appropriate will consider what changes, if any, may be necessary in preparation for and as a consequence of the UK leaving the European Union. As the UK will cease to be a member of the European Union on 29th March 2019, we will not be taking part in future European Parliamentary elections, including those which are currently scheduled to be held from 23rd to 26th May 2019. The European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 repeals the underlying pieces of legislation providing for the holding of European Parliamentary elections in the UK, and we have made a Statutory Instrument under powers in the Act that repeals all associated legislation.

Firearms and Knives: Crime

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many offences involving (a) a firearm and (b) a knife have been committed in (i) London and (ii) Lambeth since 2010.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response
(PDF Document, 80.87 KB)

Government Departments: Facebook

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Government has spent from the public purse on Facebook advertising in (a) November and (b) December 2018.

Chloe Smith: The requested information will be published in the normal way in due course.

Government Departments: Social Media

Tim Loughton: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much money the Government spent on advertising an explanation of its EU withdrawal agreement on social media in 2018.

Chloe Smith: Spend will be published in due course as part of our normal data release.

House of Commons Commission

House of Commons: Gin

Luke Pollard: To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, whether Plymouth Gin will be served in Parliamentary catering establishments ahead of Mayflower 400 commemorations.

Tom Brake: Plymouth Gin is not sold in House of Commons catering outlets and there are no plans to serve it ahead of the Mayflower 400 commemorations.